Forget Me Not
by Marvixis Mauve
Summary: To live knowing you have been forgotten... To stand in the midst of friends who no longer carry your memory... To be before your beloved, loving and is loved by someone else... To be surrounded by them all, hoping... wishing... WANTING not to be forgotten... Ch. 14; Ah... The Irony of Life.
1. 01: Trapped

**Disclaimer: I DON'T own fairy tail, although I really wish I did so that I can make NaLu happen...**

**My Very First Lucy X Natsu Fanfiction**

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><p><strong>Chapter One:<strong>

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><p>Finally, the Fairy Tail mages succeeded in helping Edolas regain their rightful King. True, most of them didn't agree at first but after the convincing false battle between Mystogan and Natsu, their minds were changed. In what seemed like an eternity of darkness and unease, Edolas has finally found peace, all thanks to the rowdy Earthland mages.<p>

Right after the declaration of Mystogan as king, all magical beings were sucked in by the anima and sent back to their world… All except for a blond celestial mage who was trapped inside an ice pillar.

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><p><strong>EDOLAS: Lucy's POV<strong>

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><p>I was shrouded in pure darkness. Not a sliver of light penetrated its walls, it was a hollow abyss of nothingness. I screamed for help, but an echo of my pitiful shrilly voice bounced its way back to me. I was alone, and I hated it.<p>

I didn't know how I had come to this place, and the last thing I remember was celebrating the crowning of Mystogan as the new king of Edolas with my precious nakama, and the stinging pain I felt before passing out.

_It was a cheerful night, and everyone has already forgotten about the past._

_Natsu was greedily munching on his large piece of fire chicken leg. Gray was off searching for his missing clothes under Erza's orders as she savored her strawberry cake. While Happy was contentedly seated on my lap eating away at his fish, I on the other hand, enjoyed watching the festive merriment of the people of Edolas._

_I was glad that things turned out to the way it was now, and I wouldn't have it any other way, except at least, the presence of some of my new found friends. The Edolas Fairy Tail guild couldn't attend since they were quite distanced from the Main land and were too tired out to transport themselves here._

_I remembered meeting my other self and the ultimate shock I remembered feeling when meeting Lucy Ashley. She was my complete opposite, a roguish persona of Lucy Heartfilia. And what's more, they were a thing with the other Natsu; Natsu Dragion. They wouldn't come out and say it officially but they respected and cared for each other without need of words. I admit, I was a bit jealous. I mean, I've been keeping my feelings for Natsu a secret to everyone and as I remembered the look in his face when he saw Lisanna, well, how could I not feel jealous of my Edolas self?_

_As I thought about these things, I felt a stinging pain on the left side of my neck. It was like the pain you felt when an insect would bite you, only ten times worse. And that's when I lost consciousness and opened my eyes to complete nothingness._

After roaming around and losing all hope of finding a way out, I sat dejected on nothing but a black floor. All I could do now was think…

_What are Natsu doing right now?_ I'm sure they're creating a raucous wherever they were. That's what they always do. _Is Natsu looking for me?_ But how could he do that when Lisanna is right there with him… I'm sure they're extremely happy now that they're finally back in each other's lives. Yeah. _Are Erza and Gray worried?_Maybe, but they're also celebrating about the return of a 'dead' family, they probably forgot I even existed… these thoughts went on and on until a piercing light caught my eye.

It was small at first, but after every second it grew larger until it was a blinding light that I had to cover my eyes. A strong gust of wind licked my pale skin, sending chills all over my body. I could hear the rustling of leaves, and a faint sigh. Finally opening my eyes, I met the dark pools of ash that belonged to my favorite dragon slayer. Natsu Dragneel was staring at me.

"W-what?" I stammered, feeling a blush crawl to my cheeks. I noticed that he wasn't in his usual outfit. The black vest rimmed with gold on the side was replaced by a maroon long sleeved sweater with white edges. His white pants were gone, instead he wore long and lose black slacks. His sandals were gone as well, and a pair of closed shoes changed them.

"What the hell are you wearing Lucy?" Natsu asked me. I looked down and found my set of usual clothes. What was wrong with it? I always wore a blue pleated skirt, and my white sleeveless blouse.

"What kind of question is that? It's obvious I'm wearing clothes, stupid." I grumbled, subconsciously searching my right hip for the pouch where my keys were usually at. I smiled when I felt them there, safe and secure. Natsu saw what my hand was holding and his eyes widened.

"You're the other Lucy aren't you?" He asked, stepping backwards. I gawked at him. Other Lucy? I thought for a moment and remembered I was still in Edolas.

"Yeah, and you're Natsu Dragneel… right?" I asked, unsure of myself. Well, he obviously wore something Natsu wouldn't, and his way of speech was intellectual… smart. Natsu could never be associated with the word 'smart'.

"Uhmm, sorry to burst your bubble… but I'm Natsu Dragion of Edolas." He said, rubbing the back of his neck, which I found adorable.

"So, where was I?" I asked, looking around. I found myself standing in the middle of a pool of cold water. I was kind of wet, and I just realized I was shivering when Edo-Natsu offered his sweater to me. Now he was topless… which helped, a lot.

"You were inside an ice pillar or something. I just found you out here when I was, uhmm.. fixing up my car." He answered, looking at me with a weird expression. Like he knew something I shouldn't know because it would probably break my heart.

"What is it? What are you hiding?" He fidgeted, but then sighed. I watched him look at me with pitiful eyes.

"Uhmm,… I don't know how to say this to you without hurting your feelings, but the other Earthland Mages left three weeks ago." Edo-Natsu said, his gaze watching me, curious to see how I would react.

At first, I felt nothing. During my time inside the dark abyss of nothingness, I've already accepted the fact that once Lisanna had returned, I would be forgotten.

Then came sadness and self-pity. I couldn't help but smile at the thought that I was never a real part of Fairy Tail's strongest team.

And last came anger. I was angry that nobody even tried to search for me, that nobody noticed I was gone while they were out there enjoying themselves.

Several different emotions probably showed on my eyes, as I saw Edo-Natsu slowly wrap an arm around my waist and pulled me into a hug. I was shocked at first, but then gave in. Tears sprang from my eyes, as I realized that the feeling of abandonment was the strongest. Even if he wasn't a fire user like his Earthland counterpart, he gave off a sense of warmth that reached my heart.

"Don't worry Lucy, we can go talk to Mystogan about this… I'm sure he can help you." Edo-Natsu assured me, caressing my hair. I felt comfortable wrapped in his soothing embrace and I didn't want to let go, but I was ashamed of being so vulnerable and weak.

"Th-thanks…" I muttered, stepping out of his arms. I wiped my tears away and smiled at him. I saw his face soften and a kindly smile grazed his lips.

"You're welcome, now what's say you join me in a ride back to the guild?" He asked, offering his hand. My smile grew wider, as I accepted his offer.

"Thanks again, Edo-Natsu…" I said, as I followed the man who found me.

"Just Natsu…" Edo-Natsu commented, looking back at me with the same goofy grin Earthland Natsu always wore. I felt my heart clench as sorrow flooded my lonely spirit. Edo-Natsu probably noticed something was wrong because he stopped walking and turned his body, fully facing me. I forced a smile, but I couldn't hold the tears back… curse my weak self.

"Ahahaha… I g-guess *sniff* I'm-m n-not ok-kay after-r all…" I laughed, wiping the tears from my eyes. Edo-Natsu gave me a pitying look, and then he placed his hands on both sides of my shoulder.

"No need to worry Lucy, I'll be right by your side during your stay here in Edolas. And we'll get you back to Earthland in no time, I promise." He grinned, pulling me into a comforting hug. Right now, I couldn't help but spill my bucket full of tears and bawl like a baby. Here was a man whom I hardly knew, looking exactly like the man who left me, comforting me even if he also hardly knew me. I smiled… _Oh the irony of life._

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><p><strong>EARTHLAND: Normal POV<strong>

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><p>It's been three days since Natsu, Erza, Gray, Happy, Wendy, Charle, Gajeel, Pantherlily and Lisanna were back from Edolas and everyone were celebrating the return of the 'dead' Lisanna. Almost everyone except Juvia and Gajeel didn't know who Lisanna was, and both of them along with the exceed and Wendy were wondering where a certain blond celestial mage was at. Wasn't she sucked into the anima like Team Natsu plus Wendy, Charle and Gajeel? But they kept quiet because they thought that Lucy was probably back at her apartment sleeping it out.<p>

Until four weeks passed by, and Juvia was now worried for Lucy. Shyly, she approached Erza, who was currently in front of a large 3 level strawberry cake.

"Ne, Erza-san… I was wondering-" But Juvia couldn't finish her sentence because the guild doors burst open, revealing a grinning Natsu, Happy flying closely behind. Juvia watched as the dragonslayer casually walked towards Lisanna who was surrounded by people and draped his arm around the young female take-over mage's shoulder. The whole guild hollered and cheered.

"I guess Natsu and Lisanna are back to the way they were back then, huh?" Juvia heard Macao comment. She sighed, and continued what she was about to say to Erza when she found that the scarlet haired mage wasn't at the table anymore and an empty plate with pink icing and bread crumbs were left on top of it. Juvia sighed, giving up.

It's not like Team Natsu would forget about Lucy anyway, maybe the blond just went on a vacation or something. Confident in her reason, she instantly searched around the guild for a certain raven haired stripper.

Gajeel on the other hand, was thinking deeply about bunny-girl. He didn't like the feeling he was having when he watched the Lisanna girl laughing and talking with team Natsu. It was like she was replacing Lucy and that bugged him. _Wait, hold up! Did I just call cheerleader her name?_Gajeel asked himself, shaking his head. He was slowly realizing that he was getting overly attached to the blond mage.

Anyway, he didn't want to bring up the said girl's name, especially around Levy because she was so happy right now, he'd probably break the dam that held Levy's tears if he ever so mentioned celestial mage. So he kept quiet about it…

Makarov, though, wasn't convinced that Lucy was at her apartment resting, or out on a vacation. It felt like Lucy never existed at all, he couldn't even feel her, which he always could for his children. Makarov was also worried about what Natsu would do when the boy realizes that he's forgotten about his most precious nakama… The guild master also wondered why no one else in the guild noticed the celestial mages lack of presence, but he kept quiet, maybe he was overreacting. Lucy was very capable of taking care of herself anyway…

None of them knew that a certain blond celestial mage was sad and lonely in a world she's only come around to living in.

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><p><strong>EDOLAS: Normal POV<strong>

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><p>It's been five weeks since Lucy was found by Edo-Natsu inside an ice pillar. Four weeks since she learned that Mystogan couldn't send her back to Earthland. Three weeks since she cried her heart out inside the arms of a certain pink haired man. Two weeks since she accepted the news, and tried to live a normal life inside a world she's never known about until recently. A week since Edo-Natsu introduced her to their version of Fairy Tail, and a day since she became a member.<p>

It wasn't as different as she thought it would be. Everything was still the same, just a bit, altered… Everyone still treated each other like family, nakama… But they had to get used to having two Lucy's inside the guild, and no Lisanna at all.

All of them though, accepted her like a lost family member whom they finally found, and she became an instant pillar of their lives. Edo-Lucy joked that she was like a lost twin sister she never thought she had. Both of them got along well, and Edo-Lucy even offered Lucy to go and live with her. She agreed, but only for a day… since Edo-Lucy's place was exactly like Earthland-Lucky's, much worse if I may add. So Lucy resulted to living on her own, moving from inn to inn as she searched for the perfect place she could call her home.

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><p><strong>Lucy's POV<strong>

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><p>I stood in front of an apartment building. It was a medium sized two storey building with a flat roof that had a garden at the center, and picnic tables all around. The first floor consisted of her kitchen, living room, a guest room, a washroom, and an empty room. The second floor was like a condo unit. It was for her only. Each room was only divided by pillars and the traditional Japanese walls, there were no doors except for her walk in closet and bathroom. A small kitchen was by the door going downstairs, the bathroom just a few meters to the left of it, and the bedroom, library, and living room set took most of the left space. To me, it was just perfect, and the rent was at a wonderful 30,000 jewel price.<p>

Edo-Natsu was happy for me. I watched him grin while we admired this beautiful place.

"This is just simply… Awesome!" I exclaimed, setting my small bag on the countertop. Just some minor alterations on the spacing and some adjustments to the place would make it the perfect home!

Natsu faced me with a concerned glint in his eyes, paired with a happy smile. "Just like the one you have back in Earthland?"

I shook my head "Much, much better…" I stretched my arms up and exhaled. "Yosh! Now that that's settled, how about we go out and celebrate? Hmmm? My treat!"

He grinned goofily, which still reminded me of _him..._ but, I've already gotten used to the unexpected memories and thoughts about Earthland bombarding me whenever. The once 'Earthland-Natsu's grin' became 'Edo-Natsu's grin' to me but it didn't erase the fact it was once _his_. He seemed to have noticed my sudden silence and the wide grin he had on turned into a grim line.

"You miss it there… especially him… don't you?" he asked stepping towards me.

"I admit, I really do miss them. But It's been a month since I got left behind, and thinking about it won't help. Anyway, just forget about it and let's get going! Man, I'm famished." I shouted, pumping my fist in the air. Edo-Natsu gave me a quiet look, and then smiled.

Suddenly, I found myself in the circle of his comforting arms. I've gotten used to him hugging me in different occasions, so this was nothing new. I hugged him back as tight as he hugged me.

"Thanks Natsu, but I'm fine… Really." I whispered in his ear. He nodded, and moved away never letting go of my waist.

"Sure ya are! Now where's the free food?" He gave me that signature goofy grin. I sighed, but smiled and led the way out of the house. Such a wonderful friend I have...

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><p><strong>End!<strong>

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><p><strong>AN:**So, that's chapter one of Forgotten... I hope you guys liked it!


	2. 02: Training

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail**

**A/N: The sites giving me a little problem in editing this chapter, so I can't thank the people who read and reviewed this story completely. But, thanks to all who R&R'd Forget Me Not! I'm really glad you guys liked it! **

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><p><strong>Chapter Two: Letting Go<strong>

**Edolas, 2 months later: Normal POV**

Everyone could see the changes in Edo-Natsu. He wasn't the cry-baby, scaredy-cat guy they grew to know and love… nor was he the prideful, arrogant, and overconfident jerk they feared when he was near his car. He changed, for the better? Or for the worst?... they didn't know.

Now, they watched cautiously as the said boy walked around the guild searching for someone. Every time the guild doors open, he would look up with an excited gleam in his eyes. But would sulk and groan when the person entering wasn't the one he was looking for. Honestly, it was weird for the boy to be walking about like that.

Suddenly, the guild doors burst open, revealing a golden haired beauty. She wore an ebony turtle neck that showed off her perfect curves, the right sleeve cut off revealing her Fairy Tail mark just below her right shoulder. A black band clung to her thin but strong wrist, studded with glimmering silver skulls. Around her hips, hung a belt that carried her whip and keys below it she wore long black leggings that clung to her slim legs. Combat boots that reached just below her knees completed her delinquent look.

Edo-Natsu looked up from where he stood, and his eyes sparkled after he saw the blond beauty. But it fell, as soon as he saw the skulls on her wristband; it wasn't the person he was looking for. It wasn't his Lucy… it was the _other _Lucy.

"Oh… hey Edo-Lucy." He waved nonchalantly at her. The said girl narrowed her eyes at the pink haired boy and raised her brows. _Natsu just waved me off…and called me Edo-Lucy… _She thought a little hurt. This has been going on lately, and she didn't like it much. Ever since her Earthland counterpart joined the guild, people started changing… _he _started changing… and Lucy Ashley had to admit, she herself was changing.

They didn't take her seriously anymore because of Earthland-Lucy. Mirajane accused her of being jealous. Levy mocked her of being weak and, well, weak. Heck, even Elfman teased her and that's never happened before. She was losing her reputation of being the blood-thirsty leader of Fairy Tail, all thanks to the girl behind her.

She stepped aside, watching as the pink haired boy's face lighted up just as soon as he saw _her. _Natsu stood up, and smiled at the other girl his eyes all bright and shining. It hurt to see how he reacted upon seeing her. She sighed, and brushed it off. This wasn't like her old self. She wasn't supposed to respond like this, she was supposed to give him one of her punishment techniques but she just couldn't… not to _him _anyways_._

"Ohio, Edo-Natsu!" The cheery blond Earthland mage greeted the pink haired man. She was in such a good mood today. It helped a lot that it's been a week since she let go of her _Fairy Tail_, and the way these people helped her move on. Natsu gave her his signature goofy grin, and it had no effect on her. *sigh* _Freedom at last… _she thought.

"Ohio, Lucy!" Natsu returned the greeting, motioning for her to take the seat to his right. Edo-Lucy just watched the two, resting her chin on the base of her hand. Mirajane came up from behind the bar and smiled at her knowingly.

"How are you coping?'' The white-haired beauty asked, as she wiped a glass cup. Edo-Lucy just sighed and hopped off her stool.

"I need to go and look for a job. Tell Levy to watch the guild while I'm gone." She said as she walked towards the request board. She passed by Gray who was trying to catch Juvia's attention, Jet and Droy scolding Elfman to stop crying and to man up, Cana refusing to join Wakaba and Macao's offer to drink, and the usual guys ogling Wendy.

"Come back safe and try not to kill too many bandits!" Mirajane called after her. She then placed her attention to Natsu and Earthland-Lucy who were talking animatedly. It was sad knowing how hard it must be for Lucy to be taking things; she was competing for Natsu with her counterpart after all. Slowly, Natsu and Lucy parted. Natsu was heading towards Gray, who got turned down by Juvia again while Lucy was on her way towards the bar counter.

"Hey, Edo-Mira-san! May I ask where Nee-san went? And can I order a strawberry shake?" Earthland-Lucy asked, with her innocent and kind demeanor. She stared at the girl for a while. It was hard to take the fact that there was two Lucy's in the guild at first, and the other fact that they were two very different people. But she handled the matter easily. Somehow, though, she found out that she preferred this Lucy better… but it would be unfair of her to think that way.

"Uhmm, she went and got herself a job…" Mirajane answered, preparing the order. While chopping the strawberries, she thought about how the guild changed. It's gotten closer ever since Lucy Heartfilia joined in, and she knew why. People began opening themselves up again. When the Royal Army was on their tail; the guild was full of frustration, fear, and almost hate. Now that guild's were accepted again, and under the reign of Mystogan, everyone was free.

After making the shake, she decided to ask Lucy something… When she returned to the bar, she saw Earthland-Lucy smiling at Levy; who was busy scowling at the floor.

"Here you go! Ohio, Levy-chan." Mirajane greeted the bluenette. Levy nodded, still scowling at the floor. The white-haired beauty wondered why, but she could ask later. Right now, she needed Lucy to answer a question.

"Ne, Lucy?" She began, taking out a glass cup for wiping. Lucy, who was sipping her drink raised her brows.

"Do you like Natsu?" Mirajane asked straight on. Lucy, not expecting the question, choked on her drink. She was coughing like crazy while Levy was suddenly laughing her head off. Mira was about to pat the blonde's back when Natsu was suddenly beside her.

"You okay, Lucy?" Natsu asked in a soothing voice nobody ever heard before, while patting her back softly. Instantly, every head was turned towards the bar. Mirajane got her answer, and smiled sadly for the Lucy she grew up with. It seems that the game was already won.

*cough* "Y-yeah… Mira-san! What's with that question?" Lucy gave her a small glare, but it died out when Mirajane just smiled at her. Levy was in hysterics, saying in between laughs something about the way Lucy's eyes were bulging and how she looked like a fat tomato.

"What so ever are you talking about, Lucy?" Mirajane batted her eyelashes in a dramatic way that Lucy couldn't help but smile. Natsu looked at them both, and then shrugged. _Girls… _

"Well, I need to tell you something." Lucy said, after fully calming down. Natsu, satisfied, went back to Gray who was crying about Juvia being so mean and pretty at the same time. Mirajane raised an eyebrow.

"I'm going to be gone for a while, cause I want to train. I'm weak with my magic, and it's pitiful with just my whip. I want to at least get stronger so that I can be helpful when there's trouble." Lucy said, receiving a weird look from Mirajane. The white-haired beauty wondered what the blond was talking about. She's seen the girl in battle, and her power wasn't something to laugh about. Her strength and determination to protect the people she loved and cared about… why did she think she was weak. Instead of pointing it out though, she just nodded and thought that she shouldn't stop the girl.

"Why not take the guild with you? I mean, we could use some training as well… There's no more magic in Edolas so we should at least learn how to defend ourselves without it." Mirajane said, having a brilliant place for training in mind. Lucy thought for a while, and agreed.

"Alright! The more the merrier…" She exclaimed, set in determination. She trained better when people were around to support her anyway.

So the guild was set in motion. A week after Lucy Ashley got back from her job, everyone was informed about the training. All agreed of course, wanting the same thought as Lucy had. Days later, they were already on wide grassland surrounded by trees of varying shapes and sizes. A river was located just nearby, and the wildlife living there would serve as their food. Not far from the training grounds, was a huge cave that could house everyone. It had two paths to it, leading to a wide flat area. They decided to make it the rooms, the left one for the guys and right for the gals.

They set the cave up like a makeshift guild. At the entrance of the cave, Lucy made Virgo dig up a lounge like room. It was complete with stone tables, and a stone bar looking exactly like the guild's own bar. Going in deeper into the cave, there stood a wide platform that served as the infirmary. Some beds were made from Aries' wools, and leaves from the forest. The last was the divided bedrooms. Again, Lucy asked Virgo out to make some cots where the girls could make it as their beds. The guys on the other hand slept on the cold floor, stating that it would make them stronger and in terms of Elfman: "sleeping on the floor is man!"

When everybody was settled, the rules were made:

1. Everyone should be awake before dawn.

2. Hunt for your own food otherwise, starve to death. Sharing would result to severe punishment in form of Lucy Ashley. **P.S Lucy: **no fair using your spirits :P

3. Help each other as much as you can.

4. A schedule is arranged, one must follow it thoroughly… or else. The schedules depend on the day, for now this will be the weekly schedule.

**4:00 AM** – wakeup call (late risers shall be punished)

**4:15 to 5:00 AM** – morning rituals (this includes fixing your bed, brushing, washing your face, changing, excer)

**5:00 to 6:00 AM** – hunting time (strictly one hour only)

**6:00 to 6:30 AM** – cooking (finish 6:30 sharp)

**6:30 to 7:00 AM** – eating (quickly people!)

**7:00 to 9:00 AM** – offense class (teacher shall still be discussed upon, but most likely it would be Lucy Ashley)

**9:00 to 11:30 AM** – defense class (probably Levy)

**11:30 to 12:00 AM** – hunting time (do not dilly-dally)

**12:00 to 12:30 PM** – cooking (by hook or by crook, your own food you must cook)

**12:30 to 1:00 PM** – eating (whether or not your food rocks or sucks depends upon your catch and ability to cook)

**1:00 to 1:30 PM** – battle tactics class (Mirajane volunteers on the subject)

**1:30 to 2:30 PM** – basic self defense class (it varies upon each method of self defense)

**2:30 to 4:30 PM** – personal training (train yourself, obviously)

**4:30 to 5:30 PM** – hunting time (be quick or you will be lost in the darkness)

**5:30 to 6:00 PM** – cooking time (the fire will be out at exactly 6:00 PM, so whether or not your food is cooked well-done or raw is beyond us)

**6:00 to 6:30 PM** – eating time (eat well)

**6:30 to 7:00 PM** – free time (the time is free :P)

**7:00 to 8:00 PM** – bonfire (everyone's presence is required)

**8:00 PM** – sleeping time (light's out)

(Again, this is an unofficial schedule to be followed by the first week. Changes will occur soon)

5. Once you've started training, you can't back out

6. Have fun!

7. Don't die (If you die, we'll have to kill you)

Also, Virgo took out a large vial with marks on it. She told all of them that once the vial is filled, the training is over. After that, they started off on the schedule.

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><p><strong>EDOLAS; 3 weeks later: Lucy's POV<strong>

Sooo… yeah, it's been weeks since I've started training with everyone. It was fun, more fun than I expected. Of course, everything started off roughly. We had to adjust to the new surroundings and rules, which sucked by the way. It was unfair! They even specifically mentioned my name!

As I was saying, it hardly looked like we were going to get through this training camp with any improvements. No one liked the idea of waking up before dawn. Almost everyone groaned when they read the rule where we had to hunt for our own food, and **not **share. I kind of knew why they were doing this, so I had no complaints whatsoever except for the part when my name came up. Honestly! Did they have to broadcast it to everyone?

After a week of adjusting to that though, things started to smooth in. Nobody complained anymore. Hunting got easier, and that's coming from me! I learned how to fish (which brought me back to moments when Natsu and Happy would drag me along in one of their fishing trips back at Earthland). I also got the hang of using spears and making traps, after watching Edo-me doing it. The others didn't worry too. Elfman even beat Jet and Droy in catching a deer, which was a great accomplishment for him. Levy and Edo-me, as usual, were fighting on who caught the biggest fish, deer, moose, and even a bear! Mirajane? I don't know where she gets her food, but she always has something to eat. Everyone else did fine as well.

The second week… that's where the real training began. Edo-me was in charge of the offensive training. Mirajane as stated in the schedule, took over battle tactics. Levy on the defense. Others took care of the more basic things like tracking, stalking, and hiding. It was fun, really. I took out Gemini so that she could produce Gray for hand-to-hand combat which would be easier for non-magical battles. Aries helped in making the beds for those ones who get worn out and needed some sleep. Virgo even volunteered her help, and dug up a small arena for the one-on-one battles we hold every end of the week. Capricorn presented himself as a teacher, and took over all forms of martial arts.

Sagittarius popped up when he heard Mirajane suggest an archery lesson; he was enthusiastic in teaching archery, very glad that people were interested in the art. His class took the 2:30 to 3:30 personal training. Crux provided to be useful for when someone would need some information on something. I was surprised though, when Aquarius opened her own gate and yelled at me for not calling her out. She said that she'd be willing to help them get stronger so that they won't be an embarrassment to the strong ones. I giggled at the way Aquarius avoided my eyes, and a small blush evident on her pale cheeks as she prattled on about my stupidity, but agreed. She taught us the ways of how to take advantage of your surroundings, most especially around water… The rest of my spirits came out often to spar or just plain watch, adding more craze to the already crazy training camp.

So now, I'm here sitting on one of the wooden stools watching Edo-me and Edo-Natsu arguing over something. I've noticed him changing for the past few weeks, and I think I prefer this side of him rather than that cry-baby type I met the first time I encountered him. He got braver, stronger, and if possible… smarter than he was before. Mirajane teases me sometimes, about being the cause of his change, but I really don't see how.

"Ya' dumb bastard!" I heard Edo-Lucy yell at Edo-Natsu who just covered his ears.

"Bla-bla-bla-bla!" He yelled back, sticking out his tongue at Edo-Lucy. Her eyes widened, and then I saw the evil aura emanate from her.

"Technique 35…" She murmured with an evil glint in her eyes. Oh boy~ here it comes… I saw Edo-Natsu try to run for it, but he was too late. Edo-Lucy already had one of her legs around Edo-Natsu's left leg, and a hand securely wrapped over his shoulder.

"The Bitch Drop!" She exclaimed, doing just that technique. Surprisingly though, Edo-Natsu was able to stand up without wobbling after being free of that treacherous technique.

"What the hell was that for!" Edo-Natsu rubbed his sore shoulder. Edo-me just gave a glare as a response before she began walking over to the bar.

"…fuckin' moron doesn't know what he did!" I overhear her muttering, as she sat beside me.

"Uhmmm, nee-san? Is there a problem?" I asked, slightly afraid that she might do one of her techniques on me too. She glanced at me, and then her evil aura was replaced with a heavy depressing one.

"Lucy~" She almost whined. It wasn't only Edo-Natsu that changed, even _she _changed! I gulped and stared at her.

"Y-yes?" I replied, almost afraid of talking to her. Edo-me sighed, and then shook her head as if contemplating whether to tell me or not. I raised an eyebrow at her, and was about to say something, when Mirajane came up behind us with a deer over her shoulder. My eyes bulged out of its sockets, as I took in the sight.

"Good Afternoon! I just got back from my hunting trip, I hope this one lasts me til' Friday!" Mirajane smiled at us in a way that seemed as if she wasn't carrying a 50 kilo dead deer over her shoulder. I checked the clock on the stone wall and saw that it was already 4:45. I still hadn't hunted for my meal.

"Good af-ter-noon…" Edo-me replied in a lazy way. Seriously, what happened that got her this way? I'd need to speak with Edo-Natsu later then.

"How in the world did you catch that thing!" I asked. She gave me a confused look.

"By my hands, of course… how else would I have caught this deer?" Mira answered so casually, like it was an everyday thing. I gawked at her retreating form.

"She's been like that since before you came here, don't be surprised." I heard Edo-me murmur. I placed my attention back to her sulking form. This was very unlike her. What happened?

"Nee-san… Are you okay?" I asked, placing a hand on her shoulder. She watched me for a moment, before shrugging my hand off. She then stood up, her back facing me.

"Absolutely fabulous." She answered, walking away. Really, what is going on? What did she and Edo-Natsu argue about to get her this… different? Looking around, I found Gray talking to an irritated Natsu. I decided to walk up to them.

"Hey guys!" I greeted, taking a seat just in front of them. Gray cowers for a moment upon seeing me, probably he thought I was Edo-Lucy, but then sighed heavily when he realized I was the _other _Lucy.

"Hey Earthland-Lucy." Gray replied, nodding at me. I smiled at him, before looking over to Edo-Natsu. He was sulking just like Edo-me, except, he was worse.

"Ne, Edo-Natsu…" I began, nudging him a bit. He looked up, and then frowned harder.

"What?" He snapped at me. My eyes widened with shock. No way would Edo-Natsu do that, unless he's really upset. Realizing what he did, he sighed and sulked more.

"Sorry, just in a bad mood." He apologized, resting his forehead on the table. I smiled at him, and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"What happened between you and Edo-Lucy?" I asked. He just shook his head.

"Don't wanna talk about it." Edo-Natsu answered. I pouted, but decided to let it go… NOT!

"Okay." I answered enthusiastically. Standing up, I caught a glimpse of his surprised face. I smirked, and then began walking away. 3… 2… 1…

"Fine. Sit down and I'll tell ya." I turned to face him and nodded solemnly, but inside, I was rejoicing. Mwahahaha! He fell for it.

"So?" I began.

"So, I walked into the guild this morning… feeling all happy and gay." He began. I started giggling, Gray along with me. He stared at us confusedly for a moment, before he realized what he just said.

"I meant happy and… well, the synonym of that word!" He defended himself. Gray and I started laughing loud, that our stomachs started to hurt.

"Right~" I teased, high fiving Gray. Edo-Natsu glared at me for a moment, before a smile started to appear on his face.

"Do you want me to continue or not?" He threatened. Gray and I instantly shut up and zipped our mouths.

"Okay, so I came into the lounge area feeling all happy and… erm, well happy. I looked around looking for y- (I noted that he stopped himself from saying something else) someone and was about to approach y- (there it went again) him when Edo-Lucy blocked my way. She said something about me being all dumb and soft, and I got kinda pissed 'cause I know I've gotten stronger and I've always been smart, and that hit a huge blow to my new found pride so I answered back: 'at least I ain't a bitch. She then stopped on her tracks and glared at me and yelled: 'ya dumb bastard!'. I covered my ears not wanting to hear any of what she has to say screaming 'bla-bla-bla-bla-bla', and I guess that got her even more pissed because she suddenly had one of her legs hooked around my left one and an arm slung over my shoulder. 'technique 35…' she says, and my eyes grew wide at that. I've been one of her favorite dolls for practice, and I know every one of her punishment techniques. I tried to pry her hands off me, but I guess I'm still no match for her brute strength. 'the bitch drop!' she yelled, and did just that to me. Surprisingly though, it didn't feel as painful as before and when I got free all that hurt was my shoulder…." He stopped, and gulped a whole lot of air.

"Breathe man! Breathe!" Gray patted his shoulder, with a confused mask over his face. I didn't get why Edo-me would suddenly be pissed at Edo-Natsu especially since they were a thing here. It probably hurt the poor pink haired man to be dealt with like that by the person he liked.

"… moving on, I yelled: 'what the hell was that for?' and before I could get an answer she just glared at me and walked away. I really don't know what I did to get her all pissed like that. I always acknowledge her, I don't go off running out of the guild and not returning for a good while like before. I've gotten stronger, that I don't get all too scared when I'm away from my car. I don't ignore her, and it's been the other way around since you came along…" he muttered, kind of in a depressed way. I smiled sadly. So it's my fault then? Is that why Edo-Lucy won't say anything?

"Oh… uhmmm" I racked my brain for something to say. He looked at me for a while, before he probably got what he just implemented in that sentence.

"I'm not telling it's your fault or anything! I-I don't want another Lucy p-pissed at me." He fumbled with his words. I shook my head and smiled. Happily this time.

"Do you think she's PMS-ing?" Gray asked. My eyes bulged out of its sockets and I suppressed a giggle. Man! If only Edo-me were here to hear that, she would have probably murdered them right there and then.

"No, I know when she's going through _that… _She'd be all over the place, wrecking havoc all around. This is different." He shook his head, thinking deeply.

"Well, as much as I'd like to help you guys… I have an, uhmmm, an appointment. Sorry Edo-Natsu! Bye Gray…" I started walking off. I heard a small bye from Edo-Natsu, and a loud one from Gray. As I walked away, I couldn't help but think about why Edo-me did that. Maybe Edo-Natsu did something he forgot about, and Edo-me is out for revenge. Yup! That's probably it. But why did she start right after I entered their lives… permanently? Oh well, not my problem. Feeling cut off from that setback, I went to the clearing and called out Leo.

"Gate of the Lion, Leo! Open!" I called out. A wave of energy rushed through my body, and a golden seal appeared just in front of me.

"Lucy~ My Love!" He yelled out, clapping his hands together in a girly kind of way as he materialized in the golden seal. Honestly, I'm getting tired of his antics.

"Loke, would you stop that?" I scolded him, unlatching my whip from my belt.

"If you give me a kiss, I will!" He answered cheerily. I rolled my eyes, and set my foot apart.

"In your dreams kitty…" I smirked, wanting him to get pissed at me and then fight me seriously. I smiled when I got the reaction I wanted: his eyes growing wide, and then twitching in irritation.

"I ain't no kitty! Are you trying to push my buttons Lucy? Just so I'd fight with you seriously this time?'' He asked. Damn! He knew me too well. Anyway, since that's out… no use hiding it from him now.

"Sure! So, will you fight me seriously now?" I asked as we started walking around a circle, never letting go of our opponent's eyes.

"Why don't you just call out Aquarius? You know she'll take you on seriously whether you liked it or not." He suggested, obviously avoiding fighting me.

"She'd kill me, and that's not something I'd like happening to me right now. Thank you very much. Ne, Loke?" I asked. He raised his brows at me telling me to go on. "Are you, perhaps, afraid of losing to me?" I taunted. That earned me a small chuckle, and I noticed that the tint of playfulness in his eyes lessened. Hmmm…

"Me? Lose? To you? I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings Lucy, but that would never happen unless you've magically upped your powers in just a week." He smiled fondly at me, folding his arms over his chest smugly. He's underestimating me, and letting his guard down. I grinned. Clutching my whip tighter, I decided to make a move.

"Chance!" I exclaimed, lashing out my whip on his right ankle and pulling at it with all I had. Instantly, he was off the ground and flying his way towards me. I stretched out my hand, and grasped his shirt collar, giving him a small satisfied smile when I saw his expression. I stood in the middle of the training ground, with my right hand gripping his collar so that he was dangling in the air, while my left hand clasped my black whip.

"H-how…" He murmured. His eyes were wide with shock, and a hint of pride. I smiled at him, and set him down.

"Well… like you said. I probably _'magically upped my powers in just a week." _I answered sarcastically. He shook his head in disbelief and offered me a smile.

"Now I know never to underestimate you again." He chuckled. I laughed with him, and after that we ended up sparing again… this time with him taking me seriously, and not letting his guard down.

* * *

><p><strong>EDOLAS; 5 months later: Normal POV<strong>

"Yosh! We're done!" Edo-Natsu exclaimed, pumping his fists in the air. Everyone cheered with him. Yes, exactly five months after the Edolas Fairy Tail guild started their training, the celestial vial that measured their improvement has finally been filled. If you'll look around them, it would be obvious the moment you see their physical appearance. Each member radiated strength and respect no matter their size. No one could say that this guild is weak with or without magic. Physically, Mentally, Emotionally, and Spiritually these people are the most powerful people right after King Mystogan.

"Oh yeah!" Gray exclaimed, doing a little victory dance while saying 'ooah-ooah'. (A/N: you know the dance where you ball your hands into fists, and make triangles in front of you while your feet are sliding alternately on the ground? Yeah, that one) Edo-Natsu chuckled at his idiocy but joined him, laughing all the while. The rest of the guild were cheering, talking animatedly with each other, sharing things, or just plain smiling at nothing.

"Everyone!" Mirajane, who was wearing her usual long pink dress, called everyone's attention. Beside her stood Edo-Lucy, who had on her usual outfit (from the anime). When no one shut up, she took over.

"Shut up would ya? Mirajane's trying to tell ya overexcited bastards somethin'!" She yelled over the noisy crowd. Silence fell over the people, scared of Edo-Lucy. Let's face it, no matter how strong they've gotten, they were still afraid of the blond scary beauty.

"Okay, uhmmm, thanks Edo-Lucy. So, I just wanted to say that I'm proud of everyone in the guild, including myself of how far we've come. This is all in thanks to our very own Lucy Heartfilia, and her simple wish to become stronger for the sake of her nakama!" Mirajane started clapping her hands, and everyone else in the room clapped along with her.

"But, where's Lucy?" Someone from the crowd asked. The clapping faded and worried murmurs overcame the people. Mirajane and the others started looking around, searching, shouting her name.

"Lucy?" Mirajane looked around the girl's bedroom. But it was just as empty as before.

"Earthland-Lucy!" Edo-Lucy yelled, as she raised a boulder from the ground. She shook her head when she saw no sign of her blond counterpart under the boulder.

"Oi! Lucy! Where are you?" Gray called, heading outside with the rest of the people.

"This ain't funny Lucy!" Edo-Natsu said worriedly, as he searched inside the forest at her favorite hiding place.

When no one could find her, they assembled at the lounge area inside the cave. Upon entering, they were surprised to find Mystogan sitting calmly on one of the bar stools while drinking a cup of tea.

"Hello everyone, it's nice to see you after a while." Mystogan greets them, still sitting casually on a wooden stool. Mirajane eyed him for a moment, reading his body language and eyes. Everyone bowed their heads in respect to the King, except for Edo-Lucy and Mirajane.

"Hello to you too, your majesty… may I know why you have come here? And how you knew where to find us?" Mirajane asked, a little surprised for speaking to the King in such a cold manner, but she reasoned that he, being here when Lucy was missing was kind of suspicious. Especially since their training camp is a secluded area. Mystogan raised his eyebrows, but smiled knowingly. It would be normal for this woman to react that way. It was her nature.

"First, promise me that you will not kill me after I tell the reason I am here." The King said, standing up. Most of the guild members gave him a confused look, while Mirajane, Edo-Lucy, and Levy were stacking things together.

"Second, let me explain before you start shooting me with accusing words." He continued, looking over the crowd of confused and worried faces. He then sighed.

"And third, I wish it could not have happened this way." Mystogan muttered the words, but over the silence, everyone heard him.

"Just spit it out already!" Edo-Lucy yelled with an impatient scowl over her nostalgic face. It reminded him so much of the woman he just cast out of Edolas. Her words were true though, he should just _spit it out _already.

"Alright. LucyHeartfilia'sgonebacktoEarthlandhoursago." Mystogan said continuously. No one understood it. Not one bit. Even Mirajane, Levy, and Edo-Lucy didn't get it.

"Say what now?" One of the members of the guild asked, overly more confused. The King sighed heavily, and looked over the crowd.

"Lucy Heartfilia has gone back to Earthland. Now, before you get all wild on me, allow me to give an explanation. Several months ago, she and Natsu of Edolas approached me asking for help. Is that right, Natsu Dragion?" Mystogan paused, looking at the pink haired man. Edo-Natsu nodded, affirming the statement of the King.

"Moving along, at that time, it was impossible for her to return to her true origin since the anima gates have been sealed off and destroyed. After they left, I remembered the sad and lonely look Lucy Heartfilia had in her eyes, so I decided to search for various ways that could send her back. A few weeks ago, I discovered a lead that might be able to bring her back to Earthland. Experimenting, and testing went on for days. It was a risky and dangerous way, that might have killed her, but it was the only one we had. Earlier this afternoon, while all of you were out in the arena watching a match between Elfman and Jet, Lucy was left here in the training grounds… Right Mirajane-san?" he asked, raising his eyebrows at the white haired bar maid.

"Yes. She said she wanted to rest and take a bath since she believed that today would be the end of our training camp." Mirajane answered, nodding her head. At this, Mystogan continued.

"Mhmm. Indeed, I found her in one of the sink holes taking a bath. I approached her and told her about my discovery, but not without receiving a hard blow on the head and an ear shattering shriek, was I able to do so. As she contemplated on staying or not, the portal I opened appeared just beside her, sucking her in whether she would have stayed or left. I decided to stay, to at least tell you, her family, of what happened so that you won't get worried." The King finished, casting a wary glance on the mob before him.

"So you're tellin' us, that Lucy's gone back to Earthland?" Edo-Natsu asked, obviously sad about the news. Edo-Lucy saw this, and felt a tight clench on her heart. Mystogan nodded.

"I apologize for this occurrence. I believe that she has etched herself a place in your hearts, and her loss is a great one to the guild so I gravely apologize, since it is partly my fault." He stated, bowing to them. All of the members' eyes widened. Here was the King of Edolas bowing deeply in front of them, and there they were merely peasants in his eyes.

"Don't apologize for something you didn't do out of whim. Lucy asked for your help long ago, and she got it now. We should be the one apologizing to you for treating you that way earlier." Mirajane spoke, sincere in her words. Edo-Lucy and Levy nodded, agreeing.

"Then I shall take me leave. I have other things to attend to, fare well, Fairy Tail. Til then!" Mystogan said, disappearing in a puff of purple smoke. When he was gone, everyone fell slumped to their stools, each carrying the same thoughts in their minds.

_I hope she's kicking butt wherever she is..._


	3. 03: Back at Earthland

**Author: I'm so~ sorry it took this long to update! I was caught up in my part-time job, chores, and family stuff so I didn't have the time to post the new chapter. It's no excuse though, so I promise to make my updates faster… or longer… or just plain there… anyway, R&R please!**

**Natsu: Excuses, excuses…**

**Author: I don't see you juggling with your writing, job, family, and social life?**

**Natsu: I don't see you trying to save some people's asses, finding your dad, and hanging out with your nakama?**

**Author: Well, as a matter of fact I - **

**Gray: Oi! Oi! Just quit the yappin' and get on with the story already!**

**Natsu and Author: I don't see you – **

**Lucy: Author-sama doesn't own Fairy Tail, any of its characters, and the likes! Hiro Mashima-sama does! **

**Happy: Aye Sir!**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Three: What's going on in Earthland?<strong>

**EARTHLAND: Normal POV**

A week after the return of the Earthland mages to their true home, the guild was still in celebration. Mirajane and Elfman were still in shock at the return of their beloved younger sister, but were happy nonetheless. Natsu was the happiest of them all. Erza and Gray couldn't help but smile all the time, and the guild was all the same. To them, everything was perfect as it was now. But to some, something was amiss.

Gajeel Redfox didn't like the white haired chick, not one bit. He felt like she replaced bunny-girl. Like it was her fault that Lucy wasn't here with them. Yes. He's been calling the blond celestial mage her name for some time now… and yes; he actually "missed" her. Gajeel didn't get how everyone forgot about her. Especially since Lucy was an integral part of the guild. Natsu, was the most who surprised him. It wasn't like the boy to forget about his closest nakama just because a lost childhood friend returned. Even Erza didn't seem to notice that she was missing, and the Knight was true to her friends. Ice boy was no different than the two. The only people who stood with him at the loss of Lucy were gramps, Juvia, Wendy, Charle, Pantherlily, and Happy. And he had an inkling suspicion that Juvia, Wendy, Charle, Pantherlily, and himself were the only ones who weren't affected aside from Gramps and Happy because they've only met the Lisanna-girl recently. Gramps couldn't have been affected since he was a powerful mage, and Happy… well, he was Happy, and Lucy was like a mother to him so that was probably it.

After a while of standing there sorting his thoughts, Gajeel decided to approach Juvia and discuss things regarding a blond celestial mage. Wendy was out on a mission with the exceeds, and Ji-chan was out somewhere, so it would just be him and her.

"Oi, Juvia. Quit yer stalkin' and let's get talkin'" Gajeel called the water mage, who was watching the ice mage intently behind a bush. Juvia blushed a little, and scuttled towards him. The guild was busy as hell, quite enamored with Lisanna, so the iron dragonslayer decided to take Juvia to the S-class floor. At least nobody would be up there, what with all the raucous going around.

"What are we going to talk about?" Juvia asked, stealing a last glance at Gray before they disappeared into the shadows of the second floor. Gajeel sneered, and motioned for her to stand beside him in the dark.

"It's been a week since we got back from the Edolas world, and Lucy's disappearance, right?" Gajeel cleared out the facts. Juvia nodded, getting serious.

"And Juvia observed that no one seems to notice her absence." Juvia added, watching the ants follow one line into a small crack on the floor. "Only us, Wendy, and the exceeds see this, as well as Master." She continued, shifting her gaze to the people below. Natsu was dancing around with Lisanna, laughing along with the guild. A small smile grazed the water mage's lips, but it never reached her eyes. How could it, when her guild forgot one of its very own? a family member? their Nakama?

"Yeah, any clues why?" Gajeel asked, sneering at the happy people downstairs. They were so oblivious to the fact that Lucy wasn't there, it made his blood boil. Bunny-girl was gone, and all they could think about was the return of that white-haired chick. She wasn't even half as fun as Lucy. Heck, she didn't even smell good. And Lucy smelt like his favorite metal… like rhodium.

"Juvia thinks it has something to do with Lisanna-san's return." The blue-haired woman answers. Gajeel nods, agreeing. It was his first theory, and his only one. "It confuses Juvia as to how it happened, but it seems like Lucy was stuck in Edolas." She continued, glancing at Gajeel. The iron dragonslayer had a steel gaze on Lisanna, watching the girl very closely. Like any move she made would answer some of the questions they had in their minds.

"Hn…" Gajeel hummed. He then began walking away from Juvia. Intent on finding out what happened to Lucy, he decided to search the girl's apartment for anything that could help. Upon reaching her home, he found it odd that it didn't smell musty and moldy, like any abandoned house would have been. Cautiously, he roamed around, only to find Makarov sitting on Lucy's couch with a thoughtful look on his face.

"Old man? What are you doing here?" Gajeel yelled out. Makarov peaked one eye open, and then opened the other to stare at Gajeel before sighing heavily. The guild master then stood up, and looked outside Lucy's bedroom window.

"Lucy's disappearance is not an accident… child." He just stated, watching as the people hustled and bustled below him. Gajeel gave him a quizzical look, before standing behind the old man.

"I guessed that… but –" Gajeel stopped when Makarov sighed again, pinching the bridge of his nose and closing his eyes tightly. He was glad that his children were all safe, and that Lisanna was back alive and alert but it shouldn't have been at the cost of them losing a precious member. Whoever dared do this, would receive severe punishment from himself, and the guild if they ever found out who.

"Someone trapped her inside a non-magical object, resulting to her being trapped inside Edolas. That is my theory. I've been thinking things through, and from what I gathered, this very may well be the only theory or even the answer to her disappearance." Makarov stated, opening his eyes to look at Gajeel. Said boy was staring at the floor, his fists clenched tight. Why would anyone do that? Did they have a grudge? But that was impossible! Since Lucy' not the type of person anyone would be holding a grudge on. _Oh boy~ I'm getting soft… tsk! _Gajeel thought.

"I've thought of that too… but who would do that? It's not like anyone in the guild would want to harm their nakama? Unless they've got issues with her, but that seems unlikely." Gajeel muttered, pinching his chin in an attentive manner. Makarov watched Gajeel, before a knowing smirk painted itself on his lips.

"My, my Gajeel… Levy's rubbed off on ya'. You're starting to sound smart!" He stated, earning a bop on the head from Gajeel.

"I am smart! Ya damned, perverted, old man!" Gajeel yelled, stomping on the ground like a tantrum throwing child. Makarov just chuckled while rubbing the sore spot on his head, as he began walking out of the house.

"What's so funny?" Gajeel followed after him, pumping his hand in the air in an irritated manner. The small guild master stopped when they were directly in front of the door, and turned his head to look at Gajeel.

"In any case, let us keep this matter to ourselves for the moment. It seems likely that the guild members were affected by whoever did that to Lucy, so that they'd forget all about her, it'd be better to keep it silent. Try looking on it more, observe your nakama, listen to what they say. More liable than not, something will reveal itself soon." And with that, Makarov opened the door and stepped outside. Gajeel just muttered darkly to himself about some things involving _small-men _and their _big words _when he looked up and saw Natsu and Lisanna looking at them. Natsu with a shocked expression, while Lisanna had a suspicious looking surprised face.

"Eh? Jii-chan? Gajeel?" He asked, looking from the guild master to the iron dragonslayer and back. Slowly, something clicked in his mind, and his eyes nearly bulged out of its sockets.

"Wh-what're you two doing stepping out of an apartment together?" Natsu blurted out, thinking that Makarov and Gajeel were living together. Lisanna on the other hand was worried… for an unknown reason that the readers wouldn't find out about until later.

"What does it look like?" Makarov answered coolly, while Gajeel said: "It's not what it looks like!" at the same time. Natsu just stared more, before a sly smile etched itself onto his lips. Lisanna was still quiet all the while, but her lips twitched upwards.

"Gajeel." Natsu said seriously. He let go of Lisanna's arm, which was wrapped around his own arm, and stepped forward to place his hands on the pierced man's shoulders. Gajeel stayed put, fighting the urge to just punch the damn salamander because he felt like being a good little boy. _Shit! Did I just think that? _Gajeel asked himself. Natsu looked into his eyes intensely (Yes… I meant for it to sound gay… forgive me) and then cracked up. "I never knew you had a taste for old men!" The fire dragonslayer exclaimed in between loud guffaws. Makarov just smiled at them, Lisanna giggling, while Gajeel snapped and had a hand instantly wrapped around the pink haired boys neck.

"Shut up, ya damned brat! Stop insulting me about my tastes, when yours are no better." Gajeel retorted, eyeing Lisanna for a moment, before spitting at the ground right in front of her and then storming off, dumping Natsu on the ground. Lisanna was frozen to her place, insulted and… _why was she feeling guilty? _Natsu just coughed, rubbing his throat. Makarov on the other hand, ignored what happened and walked away.

"Forgive Gajeel. It was your fault anyway." Was his simple statement, before disappearing into a curb. Natsu stood up, and placed an assuring arm on her shoulder. She looked up, and saw that Natsu was smiling at her comfortingly.

"Don't listen to the dumbass. He's just trying to pick a fight." He said, patting her head. Lisanna nodded, and shrugged off the weird feeling of guilt she had, deciding that Natsu was right, and that he had _great _taste. So they went back to strolling in the streets of Magnolia together, reveling in each other's presence.

Natsu was happy, no, Natsu was more than happy… he was ecstatic. Not only did he save a whole race of people in a parallel universe from their demise, but he also got back his childhood friend, Lisanna! Nothing in this world could make him any happier, unless of course, he found his missing father. But sometimes, he felt strangely off. It was like something was missing. It was weird though, because everyone of his nakama was around, now with Lisanna. Still, it bugged him when that weird feeling came over him like Erza's demonic aura.

"So? Where are we going?" Lisanna asked, breaking Natsu's train of thought. The salmon haired boy grinned that goofy grin, and pulled her along the streets with an extra skip to his walk. Lisanna just chuckled, and hurried alongside him. As the blur of the people they ran past whizzed by, her mind suddenly took her to that distant dream, a dream she never wanted to heave dreamt.

_It was the party before the anima sucked the Fairy Tail mages back to Earthland… Lisanna was inside her guild, sad that they couldn't attend the celebration. But she was glad she had a chance to see them again, before things returned back to normal. As she watched the fireworks that took place at the royal city, she felt a tap on her shoulder. It was Mystogan… no, it was King Mystogan. Lisanna instantly bowed her head in respect, and greeted the King._

"_Your Highness…" She said, and stood straight. Mystogan smiled at her, and looked to where Lisanna's gaze was at moments before. _

"_I know what you really are, who you originally were, and what you long for the most… Lisanna Strauss." The new King of Edolas stated, his eyes staring intently at the young white-haired woman. Said girl took a shocked step back, while her heart started pounding. _Did he find out? What is he going to do? _She thought, afraid and nervous. But before she could find out what was going to happen, a bright glow illuminated the room, and made her momentarily blind. _

_When she opened her eyes again, she was in a cave, or somewhat a cave… actually, she didn't know. But she did know that inside the cave stood a cloaked man or woman… again, she didn't know. _

"_I believe you want something?" The cloaked person whispered hoarsely, stepping forward. Instinctively, Lisanna took a step back and searched the place for any exit. She almost gave up, seeing that there couldn't have been any way in or out of the place, until her eyes caught a sliver of light on the ceiling. It seemed like a crack, and she was sure she could fit in it. _

"_I won't hurt you… little girlie. I'm here to help." He whispered again, taking another step forward. Again, Lisanna took a step back. This happened for a while, until she found herself against an earth cold wall. _

"_Wh-what do you want?" She hissed, or tried to at the least. Inside, she was scared and trembling. Fear eating at her nerves. Behind the hood, she saw a small creepy smile make its way to the person's face. _

"_I want to help you…" He or she rasped again. Lisanna shook her head. _

"_How can y-you help me, when I don't n-need helping?" She asked, trying to put a little fight to her trembling voice. The cloaked figure just chuckled, and turned around. _

"_I know what your heart desires of… I can help you attain it." He/she answered, a small dark purple aura emanating from him/her. _

"_I d-don't know what y-you're talking ab-bout…" She tried again, but an image flashed through her eyes. It was of her, and a certain pink haired man and a certain blond haired woman out of the picture. _

"_Just say the words, and I'll rid of her for you…" The person said, turning to face Lisanna. This time, her hood was down, and revealed herself to be a woman… an old one at that. _

"_Rid who? I don't have anyone I want to be ridded of." Lisanna was curious now. Her fear was still consuming her, but it was slower now. The woman smiled, and looked at her. Lisanna saw two beady purple colored eyes… death swimming in them. _

"_Your mind lies, but your heart speaks the truth… it longs for the man who lives in flames. But it yearns for the demise of one who controls the stars." She says, the dark violet glow growing by the minute. Lisanna shakes her head, not believing one word the woman said. It was obvious that Natsu Dragneel was the one who lives in flames, but who was the one who controlled the stars? Still, it was true, she wanted her and Natsu to go back to the way they were back in Earthland, but how could that happen when she was fated to stay in Edolas? And why would she want another persons' death just so she can have it? Especially since it was a person she hardly knew. _

"_It's not impossible little one, just speak it, and it shall be yours…" The old woman whispered, grazing Lisanna's cheek with her rough fingers. It sent bad chills down the younger girls' spine, and she instinctively moved her face to the other side, avoiding the hand._

"_I-…" Suddenly, the same bright glow from Mystogan appeared, and she was standing directly across a beautiful woman with blond hair and gorgeous hazel eyes. She watched as the blond girl was happily watching Natsu and the others having fun, and she felt something clutch her heart and squeeze it. _

"It is yours… if you just say the words" _the voice of the old woman whispered in her ear. Lisanna snapped her head to the right, and saw no one… But something stirred inside of her, and she unknowingly agreed. _

_The old woman smiled to herself from the shadows where she stood hidden when she heard the girl's heart speak. It was a faint whisper, barely a whisper even, but she heard it. A small voice calling out to her for help, for her dreams with the man who lived in flames, and the desire for the end of the one who controlled the stars. She smirked to herself, as she achieved her goal. Silently taking out a small tube, and a needle, she positioned herself for the hit. _

_Lisanna watched as the blond girl suddenly vanished, as in she went *poof*. Nobody seemed to notice it, and that got her suspicious. Slowly, she made her way to where Natsu and the rest were eating, when suddenly the anima started sucking the magical beings up. She was taken as well, and that got her worried. What about her Edo-Mira-nee and Edo-Elfman-nii? Until she caught them smiling at her, and heard Mirajane whisper something to her…_

"_We knew all along, Lisanna… we knew all along…" _

It was a strange dream, for nothing of the sort happened. When she was in the Edo-Fairy Tail guild, Mystogan never appeared, and she never had met the old woman. Lisanna never saw that blond girl anywhere, nor did she know who the one who controlled the stars was.

As she thought these things through, she found herself bump into a wall… or what she thought was a wall at first. When she checked again, it was Natsu, and they were standing right in front of a Sola tree.

"What are we doing here?" She asked stepping beside him, ignoring the fact that her nose hurt because of the impact on Natsu's back. The fire dragonslayer just smiled at her, and pointed up. On top of the wide branches of the tree, stood a comfy looking tree house, and nailed to the trunk were some planks set up like stairs. (A/N: I placed a tree house on top of the sola tree, problem?)

"I don't remember this here…" Lisanna muttered, looking up at the tree house. Natsu just grinned at her.

"Of course ya don't! Me, Happy, and –" Natsu abruptly stopped and stared at the ground. Lisanna watched as various emotions flashed through his eyes… It worried her, but let him be. It seemed like it was a serious matter…

Natsu on the other hand, couldn't finish his sentence. That feeling of emptiness returned tenfold when he saw the tree. It was like someone else helped him build it, someone important… but who was it? Deciding that maybe the answer was inside, he jumped up, grabbed a low branch, and swung himself inside. Lisanna just followed, silently, wondering what was wrong with the guy.

_Inside…_

Natsu was shaking. He felt like crying when he saw all of the things inside. It was like a museum of memories for him. From the time in Hargeon, and that mission that involve the Duke of Everlue… everything was in the small tree house. Still, something was weird. There were these things that reminded him of someone, but he didn't know who.

The maid outfit obviously didn't belong to him. There were missions that involved three mages but he didn't recall doing any of them with any member of the gang. He smelled a weird, smell of a girl… but it was mixed with the moldy and musty smell of the wood so he couldn't pin point who. When he searched the drawers, he found some girl's clothes, girl's things, and other girl's stuff. When he entered the lounge area, he found stacks and stacks of books… It was weird. He doesn't read books, unless it has pictures in them or if it involved cool guys and dragons. And he didn't remember bringing anyone else in here other than himself, Happy and… and that missing, unknown person. _Maybe that person was a girl, and she was the one who helped me build this tree house… _Natsu thought.

He approved of that answer, and looked around more. Silently, Lisanna's head popped up from the entrance and she smiled when she saw Natsu all cheery and happy again. When she fully entered though, she frowned when she saw female objects, and some girl's belongings scattered (neatly) all around.

"Ne, Natsu?" Lisanna wondered, looking around. Inside the drawers were Natsu;s clothes, along with a girl's. She felt weird, sad, and angry… she knew the weird part, and why she was sad… but she didn't know why she was angry.

"Hmmm?" Natsu answered, rummaging through a bunch of clothes lying on the floor. When he finally felt what he was looking for, he stood straight and beamed at her.

"Who owns these things?" Lisanna asked, pointing to a bra peeking from one of the drawers. Natsu glanced at it and shrugged.

"I don't really remember who… but I know that I built this tree house with a girl, and Happy. Why? You wanna borrow her stuff?" Natsu grinned at her, leafing through the book he got from under the pile.

"Ahm, no… not really. " Lisanna answered, frowning a bit. Who was the girl? Was she someone special to Natsu? Did Natsu already love someone else? Does she still gave a chance?

"So, how were you these past two years?" She decided to start a conversation. Natsu grinned that goofy grin, and looked at her.

"I was great! You know how awesome I am… I always beat the bad guys, and I grew stronger too! I even beat Laxus, and Gajeel, and Jellal!" He replied cheerily. The white-haired mage smiled fondly, and looked at the book Natsu was holding. It stopped on a page that held a picture. Leaning forward, she caught sight of it. It was a group picture that held Gray and Erza standing on both sides with smug smirks on their faces. Natsu was at the center sitting on a bench, with his hands draped on a girl with-

She didn't get to see who the girl was when Natsu slammed the book shut, and had a serious look on his face. Lisanna wondered what was wrong, and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Natsu, what's wrong?" She questioned. It seemed as though Natsu was frozen. And in his mind he was.

**Natsu's POV**

It hurts. It hurts so much. It's like Gajeel chopped my heart to pieces, and called Gray to freeze them so that I couldn't put them back together. What's happening to me? Ever since Lisanna got back, I had this weird feeling in my chest. And when I saw that picture, with this weird busty blond haired chick… It's like she meant something to me, but who was she?

"Natsu, what's wrong?" Lisanna asked me. I wanted to give her a smile and say that I was okay, but who was I kidding? I'm not okay. Not when I feel like I've forgotten one of the most important people in my life, even more important than Igneel…

"_What is he?" I asked myself, while Happy and I were sitting on the cold cobblestone ground. I heard heels clicking on the stone floor, and when I turned around to look, I saw the same busty blond chick from the photograph. _

"_He is really disgusting." She said. "Thanks for earlier." The girl smiled at me and Happy. Moments later, we found ourselves eating to our heart's content inside a restaurant. _

"_Yhur ah naiz Burrzonn" I tried to tell her while shoving some fire chicken in my mouth, and then gulping down some fire whiskey, completing the meal by gobbling on some burgers. _

"_Yhup! Yhup!" I heard Happy agree, while he also munched on some fish. The blond chick just smiled at us in a twitchy way… and then she told us all about how she wants to join a guild. And then she asked if we were looking for someone, and that's when I realized that it was impossible to find Igneel in a town._

"_I guess I better get going." The busty blond said, leaving enough money to pay for the food Happy and I ate. "But go ahead and take your time." She added. While she was walking away, Happy and I came to the same terms. _

"_Thank you for the meal!" We exclaimed in unison, bowing our heads to her. "Thank you!" _

_When I looked up, she was standing in front of us with a weird, wide eyed look. "Kyaah! Don't! You're embarrassing me!" She yelled, pulling me and Happy off the ground. I grinned at her, and decided to give her the fake Salamander's signature. _

"_I don't want that!" She shrieked at us, and then walked out of the restaurant. _

Who the hell is that girl? How come I have a memory like that, when I don't even remember any of those things happening? Argh! Who are you, you big breasted blond girl?

* * *

><p><strong>6 months later (The Fairy tail Edolas + Lucy's training) <strong>

Natsu was still frustrated about who the blond girl was. He even showed the pictures, and things to everyone in the guild, but everyone also didn't know who she was. They even searched around Magnolia, and Fiore for anyone who knew her, but it seemed as though she didn't even exist. Only Makarov and the others who were suspicious of Lucy's disappearance knew who the girl in the picture was. They kept it silent though, hoping that the other members would remember on their own.

Gajeel on the other hand, was tempted to just tell everyone else, hoping that they'd know. But Makarov was strict. He thought it might affect all those who might have been cast a spell to forget Lucy, so Gajeel followed. Wendy and Juvia tried their best to keep from accidentally speaking about her, and Happy had it the hardest.

To Happy, Lucy was like his mama, and it hurt him to know that Natsu of all people could have been affected. Still, he hoped that Lucy would return soon, and that this would be forgotten.

**5 months later (The day Mystogan sends Lucy back to Earhtland, hopefully…) **

Everyone threw the matter of the blond girl to the backs of their minds, and returned to their jobs. Here, Gajeel was so pissed off that he almost ripped Natsu's head off for no reason. This made Makarov so~ mad, that he sent Gajeel on a three month mission at Pergrande Kingdom. This made the iron dragonslayer annoyed, but he had to do it… besides, it paid BIG.

**Gajeel's POV**

Fuck that damned old geezer! Why'd he have to send me to Pergrande Kingdom of all places? For three months? It did pay good… 500,000 Jewels, and that's just so that he could accompany and lead a rich merchant's caravan back to Fiore. It didn't even spike up his blood thirsty side, but it was better than facing the wrath of the small guild master.

**First Month…**

It was hell. Like, real hell. The weather is too damn hot, and I wasn't even allowed to sit in the carrier! I was tempted to bash that little fat man's face, but it would mean no 500,000 Jewels for me. While travelling, I kind of picked up on a lot of things. I even heard of this delinquent chick that ransacked a whole dark guild, and sent them all to the Magic Council. I was impressed, of course. It's a girl for crying out loud!

**Second Month…**

I'm getting excited. Okay, I'm no damned girlie-girl, but I really am getting hiped up. First, this delinquent chick is getting nearer and nearer to out caravan. Second, I hear she's as troublesome as the Salamander, and on par with Titania. Third, I fuckin want to fight her. The rich fat man I'm watching over is scared out of his pants that the "black rose" would attach his caravan, and so I was allowed to ride alongside him. Heh, scaredy-cat.

**Third Month…**

I'm disappointed. The chick never showed up and attacked us, and now I'm back in Fiore. I dropped the rich fat man off at his mansion, and received my 500,000 Jewels… I can buy a truck load of my favorite metal! That's the fucking life!

I decided to walk back to Magnolia, since I'm no transportation nut… and while going there, I heard about li'l miss "black rose". She's in town. An evil grin plastered itself on my face, and I hatched a plan.

**Normal POV**

Gajeel sat in the middle of a meadow, with a big sign with "COME FIGHT ME, _BLACK ROSE_" painted on it. That was his big plan, and it worked when in a few days of waiting, the infamous "black rose" appeared. She was dressed in delinquent clothes, wearing a hooded cloak over herself. Gajeel could see silver studded boots, perfect for kicking little people, and silver buckled gloves.

"Fight me." He sneered, standing up to pose for an attack. But before he could even take a sprint forward, a breeze cut between him and the delinquent girl, making her hood fall back. His eyes widened in shock.

"Shit. Bunny-girl?" He asked aloud, jaw dropping.

* * *

><p><strong>Author: Whoo~ that was a long chapter... Well, I hope you guys liked it! I promise to update sooner! R&amp;R please<strong>

** **


	4. 04: I Black Rose?

**(*Turns on tv)**

**Raven: Hey guys! Thanks so much for reading and reviewing my story! I can't believe it's reached about 50 reviews! You guys are so awesome! And to serve as thanks, I present to you Chapter Four! **

**Natsu: Who's Black Rose? She sounds weird…**

**Gray: Says the guy with pink hair.**

**Natsu: What did you say? Huh? You stripper?**

**Erza: Boys! You're getting along, aren't you?**

**Gray: Y-yes Erza (shrinks)**

**Natsu: A-aye!**

**Lucy: Happy #2 returns! **

**Happy: Aye Sir! **

**Raven: Erza, would you please do the honors?**

**Erza: With pleasure. Raven-sama does not own Fairy Tail nor any of its characters. Hiro Mashima-sama does.**

**Raven: On with the story! **

**Normal POV**

* * *

><p>"Shit. Bunny-girl?" Gajeel asked aloud, his jaw dropping. The girl smirks and spreads out her arms in a bowing manner.<p>

"I'm back, Gajeel." Lucy said, a grin etching itself on her lips. She was clad in black delinquent clothes. Her hair was tied up in a high pony tail; her bangs slanted covering her left eye. Three silver piercings on her right ear, and a golden loop on her left. She wore a black turtleneck sleeveless upper that stopped at the base of her rib with a purple circle drawn at the back, and some bandages around her abdomen and lower arm, gloves with silver buckles covered her hand but not her fingers which had its nails painted purple.

On her hip, was a dark violet belt that had lots of pockets and loops… it also held her keys that obviously grew in number. Lucy had on a black short skirt that opened at the side, it had dark violet edges and a beautiful design of purple sakura flowers. Inside, she wore black cycling shorts that reached her upper knee. Around her left thigh, was a holster, that held some shinobi tools. For her shoes, she wore open flats that were black, and her nails were painted purple. The cloak she had on, was a dark shade of violet that was almost black. It had the same sakura flower design to it, with purple edges.

Gajeel was impressed with her appearance. In his opinion, he preferred this Lucy than the _old _cutesy Lucy. He was also impressed with the aura she was emitting. _What's she been doing this past year? _He thought to himself, as he had a smug smirk on his face.

"I ain't going soft on you, bunny-girl." The iron dragonslayer sneered, posing for an attack. He was very much excited to fight the infamous _black rose _of clover town. Lucy leered, and just stood there.

"After over a year of not seeing each other, this is how you greet me?" Lucy asked, feigning sadness. Inside, she was just as excited as he was. After Mystogan appeared during her bath, and sending her into a portal leading to who knows where, she's spent 2 whole months earning money and helping Clover Town… in her own way

* * *

><p><em><strong>Flashback<strong>_

"_La… La la… la la la la" Lucy hummed to herself, as a satisfied smile appeared on her lips. Loke just left moments ago and she was free to bathe in the river in the nude. Taking off her worn and torn clothes, she dipped herself into the warm flowing water. _

"_Ah~" Lucy let out a contented sigh. It was perfect. Satisfied, she started rubbing off the dirt from her abused body. Sometimes, a soft golden glow would appear over some serious cuts and bruises, but Loke already explained why it did that… so she didn't freak out like before. Afterwards, she decided on just sitting there, and relaxing. Until her peaceful moment was interrupted by a rustle of a bush right in front of her. Crossing a protective arm over her chest, she slowly reaches for her kunai and was about to throw it at the bush when King Mystogan stepped out. _

"_Eeeiiiiikkkk!" Lucy screamed on the top of her lungs, and threw a huge rock on his head. Mystogan wasn't able to dodge it quick enough, and so he received a strong blow on the head. "_

_What the hell! You scared me! Oh shit… I meant, good day your highness." Lucy bows her head, although she hid the kunai behind her and sunk deeper into the water in an attempt to hide her naked body. Mystogan on the other hand was wide eyed and staring while rubbing his sore and probably bleeding head... An awkward silence passes by them._

"_You're naked! What are you doing naked in a forest?" The King exclaims, snapping his head to another direction with a furious blush on his face. Lucy's right eye twitches in irritation, even if a blush found itself over her cheeks. _

"_I'm taking a bath, you idiot! I meant, your majesty.'' Lucy inwardly groaned. She was so~ gonna get punished, it was Edo-Lucy's fault anyway… for rubbing off on me._

"_I… er… uhmmm… I apologize. Anyway, I brought good news. You might want to change into your clothes before I tell you though." King Mystogan says, turning around. He was ashamed of himself… not realizing that Lucy was taking a bath before stepping out of the bushes. Lucy, forgetting to bring any clothes since she thought she'd be able to walk to the cave and change there, only had a towel at hand. So she wrapped it around herself and cleared her throat to indicate that she was ready. _

_When Mystogan turned around, he almost choked on his spit. There, not meters before him, was the beautiful Heartfilia girl clad in only a towel. Swallowing the lump that formed in his throat, he began to speak. _

"_I've found a way to send you back to Earthland." He said, afraid of his voice cracking. Lucy on the other hand was frozen. _No. Not now. Not when I've started to forget about them. Not when I've moved on. _Lucy thought, he mind and heart confused and afraid of what to do next. _

"_I'm sorry… but this can only occur once. I've found a portal that would or would not send you back to Earthland. Is that not what you wish? To return to your true origin?" Mystogan asked, forgetting about the towel covered woman in front of him, and just focusing on the situation. _

"_B-but… I-I don't know what to do… how am I supposed to react to this? I'm confused!" Lucy said frustrated. Inside, she was both happy and sad. Happy because she could go back to her real home. Sad that she'd leave the people she's come to know, love, and care about. _Why is life unfair? Why does it keep picking on me?

_Suddenly, a small ring appears beside Lucy glowing red. It slowly grew in size, and was about half of Lucy's height._

"_No! Lucy, tell me now… do you or do you not want to remain in Edolas!" The King yelled, afraid of what might happen. If the portal grew larger, it could suck Lucy in whether she liked it or not. But if she decided to stay here, now, while the portal was half her size, he could stop it. _

"_I-I don't know!" Lucy yelled back, clutching her head. The portal suddenly stopped growing, and everything went silent…until a sudden outburst of magic escaped the portal and sucked Lucy in. _

"_Noooo!" Mystogan cried, reaching for Lucy's hand, he barely touched her finger when she disappeared. Meanwhile, Lucy was screaming, frantically searching for some place to hold on to, or to step on. But it was an empty space that had neither walls nor floors. She could feel the tug of magic on her, and slowly, she lost consciousness. _

_When she opened her eyes, she was surrounded by people. Everyone was staring at her; some had angry and disgusted looks, others had on weird smiles, and still some were taking pictures of her. Looking down, she found herself still clad in the towel she wrapped herself in. She began to worry about her appearance, until she noticed the place. It wasn't Edolas… there weren't any floating islands, no weird trees and plants… no frogs that turned large… no Mystogan… _

"_E-earthland?" Lucy exclaimed, standing up. The people still just stared at her, the men obviously ogling her almost naked form. _

"_What're ya looking at? Huh!" Lucy yelled at them, raising a fist. Slowly, the people left her alone, but they still gave her weird and creepy looks. Satisfied, she checked her body while her right hand instinctively went to her hip, and her eyes widened when she didn't feel her keys and whip. _Oh right! I was only wearing this towel… NO! MY KEYS! _Lucy thought, searching frantically around until she spotted it. It was in the hand of a little boy. He saw her looking at the keys, and handed it to her._

"_Thanks little dude…" She patted his head. The boy smiled at her, and ran away. Lucy shook her head, and decided to search for some clothes that she could use._

_A lot of things happened since then. She became a solitary mage, fighting off the bad guys… she became a hero... a wanted hero. Since she began having the knack of leaving black roses after every mission, or capture, people started calling her __**Black Rose…**_

* * *

><p>"You know how I roll…" Gajeel answered, taking a step sideward, with his hands and arms turning into iron poles. Lucy also takes a step sideward, opposite Gajeel, and takes out her whip from the belt.<p>

"Oh yes… very much. So, how are you and the guild? Heard that you and Levy got hooked up?" Lucy grinned, taking another step to the side. The iron dragonslayer smirked, and ran forward on full speed. He aimed his left arm (which was now an iron pole) on her right hip, and was about to hit when his target disappeared into thin air.

Just then, Lucy appeared behind him, trapping him in her whip. The blond girl chuckled, and whispered in his ear.

"Please answer my questions before attacking, it would do you good." She said, and let go of him. Hopping off to a far distance, Lucy snapped her whip back to her belt, and slipped five kunai's in between each of her fingers.

"Tsk! Acting all high and mighty now, eh?" Gajeel spat, also hopping to a far distance from Lucy. He underestimated the girl. She's grown so much, he was slightly proud… even if he knew they weren't that close… he still had a right though… _right? _

"I _am _high and mighty…" Lucy retorted, sending one of her kunai towards Gajeel. He just deflected it with his iron arms, and punched Lucy. But when he reeled his arm back in, Lucy wasn't anywhere in front of him. He instantly turned around, anticipating that she would attack behind him again, but nothing happened.

"Not behind you… above you…" Lucy's voice rang out. Gajeel instantly looks up, and his eyes widen when he finds Lucy floating in mid air, with her hands holding her whip. The cloak thrashed around her, as the wind blew at it strongly. Her blond hair danced along to the breeze, and her gaze was right on Gajeel's. Rapidly, she threw the daggers towards him, not giving the iron dragonslayer any chance of escape.

"Tsk!" Gajeel spat in exasperation, forming an iron shield with both his hands (A/N: can he really do that? I'm curious…). When he looked up, Lucy was no longer above him.

"Look alive Gajeel!" Lucy's voice echoes all around him. Gajeel frantically looks around him, above him, and even below him… but he just couldn't find Lucy.

"What the hell!" He bellows in pain when he felt a blade sink into his side, probably reaching a vital organ. Just as he was about to pull it out, another one sinks into his left arm making it numb. Cursing, he begins pulling it out, until another one finds itself inside his right palm, the shaft of the blade poking out of the back of his hand.

"Have you grown weaker Gajeel?" Lucy asks, suddenly appearing behind him, a dagger conveniently positioned over his jugular vein.

"Shit. You've gotten stronger bunny-girl, I'll acknowledge that…" Gajeel replies with pure hatred and an ounce of admiration. "But you've still got a ways to go!" He exclaimed, stepping on her left foot and then elbowing her face with the right arm. He then punches her on the abdomen with his iron club, runs to catch her, and kicks her spine. Next, he makes his hand into a large blade and slashes at her… Lucy blocks it by crossing her arms out in front of her, but her arms got cut up because of it. Due to the impact though, she slides backwards on her knees.

"Argh!" The celestial mage groans, covering both of her cut up arms with her hands. Gajeel watched, as her hands suddenly glowed in a golden ethereal light. Suddenly, his eyes widens when Lucy let's go of her arms.

"Eh?" He yells, leaning forward to try to get a closer look. The blood that was flowing continuously just moments ago now stopped, and from the looks of it, her wounds were nowhere to be seen.

"Ah… there it goes again," Lucy mumbles to herself, but Gajeel heard it loud and clear. _There it goes again? What's that supposed to mean?_

"Well, I can say that you're still that strong. But Gajeel, you do know that iron, no matter what you do, would rust?" Lucy asks, reaching both hands to her back. She snaps her cloak off, and unsheathes two swords crossed over each other strapped on her back. Gajeel prepared himself, realizing that attacking without any plans wasn't possible. He had to think, which he usually never did in any battle.

"What, you can use swords now too?" The iron dragonslayer makes his arms into swords as well. Lucy merely smirked, and walked calmly towards Gajeel.

"You know what I've been doing ever since you guys left me in Edolas?" The celestial mage questions, her hazel eyes turning a shade darker. Gajeel on the other hand was surprised. _I knew it! She __**was **__trapped at Edolas! _

Lucy begins sliding the sword on her right hand on the ground as she continues walking. Gajeel just stands his ground, not afraid of her.

"I've been training… Edolas is a magic void world… but somehow, I can use my magic. I enhanced my ability to call my spirits, found new bonds with them. I met new skills, created new ways to get stronger… When I got back from Edolas, I improved by taking on jobs I never could have finished before. Training by day… working by night… That was my way!" Lucy screams, charging forward. Gajeel takes his blocking stance when Lucy sliced her swords in the air. The metal faced mage finds himself being pushed backward from the impact. But he couldn't find a way to counter, since Lucy just kept on coming at him.

"I had the urge to go visit you guys! *slash* to see if you still remembered me! *slash* but when I got there..." The celestial mage suddenly stopped, her head bowed and her eyes covered by her bangs. Gajeel takes the chance to leap off to a far distance from her and watched. Lucy's shoulders began to shake.

"Wait, you went to Fairy Tail?" Gajeel asked, shocked. How come he didn't even smell her? Well, he hasn't been in Fairy tail for over three months now, so he couldn't know.

"When I got there, not one person seemed to notice my absence. I looked around, asked about Lucy Heartfilia… but nobody even knew who she was… *sob*" Lucy started crying. It hurt her to think that nobody even remembered her. Not one person remembered who she was, not even Natsu. Of course, she's prepared herself for this and even got over it. But it still hurt as hell. By then, Gajeel lowered his guard and watched sadly at the blond girl who was crying.

"L-Lucy…" Gajeel started, but he stopped when he didn't know what to say next. Juvia, Wendy, Master or any of the exceeds should have see her… but maybe they weren't there. Clenching his fists, he thought of the only way he knew of consoling a person… by fighting. Transforming his hand back into swords, he charges forward.

"Enough crying, let our fists do the talking!" Gajeel yelled, making a move to stab Lucy's leg. But the girl simply blocked it using the swords by crossing it over the leg before Gajeel could even hit. When the iron dragonslayer looked up, he saw that the tears were now replaced with a smirk.

"Of course… it's _just _like you to fight a girl who was crying moments ago." Lucy smiled, leaping backwards.

"I'm fighting no ordinary girl, so yeah…" He answered, sneering at her. Gajeel then makes his hands return into fists and places them over his mouth. He gathers magic power into his mouth, and shapes it into a tornado.

"Iron dragon's roar!" He yells, sending it towards Lucy. The girl tries to dodge it, but was only able to quickly move away, hitting her left leg in the process. She skids backwards, and stops at the base of a tree with her leg bleeding, a metal shard poking out of her skin. Lucy frowns when she sees the wound, but just as soon as she saw it, the golden light appeared, spitting out the shard from her leg. Surprisingly though, the large open wound did not heal which made Gajeel smirk.

"Hah! Now here comes… Iron dragon sword!" The iron dragonslayer exclaims, charging forward. Lucy just watches him with a slight edge to her look, and suddenly vanishes. Gajeel slides to a stop and furiously looks around. The celestial mage was nowhere to be found.

"Where the hell are you!" Gajeel roars, furiously searching for the girl. He tried to smell her, tried to sense her, but it was like she wasn't even there in the first place.

"What? Miss me already?" Lucy appears out of nowhere, her voice deeper and scarier. Gajeel punches her, but in a flash, she was gone. He whips his head to the right and finds her standing merely inches from him.

"Hi!" She grins, but then a dark shadow covers her face and she gets all serious. "Bye~" She whispers to his ear in a terrifying way that it sent chills down Gajeel's spine. Swiftly, Lucy grabs his fist and twists it behind him.

"Dance of the Canis major! Sirius!" The celestial mage exclaims, emitting a bright gold aura around her body. Suddenly, they are surrounded by a globe of a golden hot turbulent gas. Lucy then disappears, and Gajeel is hit with multiple bursts of celestial energy, beating him everywhere.

"Gwaaah! Ack! Ugh!" The iron dragonslayer grunts at every hit. _Shit! She hit a vital organ… gotta use my iron skin. _

"Iron dragon's scales!" He yells, his body instantly covered with hard scales. Lucy sees this, and frowns.

"That won't work on this… assault of the hunter, Orion!" Lucy screams, forming a blue seal with her hands. The golden globe that wrapped itself around Gajeel disappeared, but then it was replaced with a larger and brighter blue globe. Instantaneously, spears of different shades of blue shot off from the azure globe and even pierce through his skin. Gajeel falls on his knees, his gaze getting blurry and his breathing ragged.

"What happened to you? Is this really the great iron dragonslayer; Gajeel Redfox? Or maybe you're just a fraud." Lucy wonders aloud. Gajeel spits blood, and glares at the direction of where the voice was coming from.

"Glaring has no effect on me… anyway, I think I probably should stop this or you'd end up dead. Ne, Gajeel?" The celestial mage asks cupping the face of the metal faced mage. She sees him struggling to stay conscious and notices the mark of the hunter on his forehead.

"Yeah, I really should stop this. DISPERSE!" She yells. The blue globe slowly breaks into small particles and then disappears completely, leaving the two battling mages in open air. Lucy places both hands over his chest, and the faint glow that appeared over her open wound materialized around his whole body. Gajeel was slowly engulfed by a sphere of the same golden light.

"Wh-what are you… doing?" He asks, his voice hoarse and out of breath. Lucy notices his anxious expression and smiles warmly at him.

"Relax, Gajeel. I'm not going to kill you. You recognized me after all, and I still consider you a friend. Especially since you're dating Levy-chan… although I wonder how that happened, did you seduce her or something?" She marvels at the thought. Gajeel just glares at her, and winces when a sharp pain shoots throughout his body.

"You'll be fine soon… hey, Gajeel? Oi! Do-'' Lucy stops talking when she sees that he was already fast asleep. She smirks, and places a palm over his forehead.

"Yeah, it's just like you… argh! Now I have to carry you, you metal faced idiot." She groans, securing an arm over her shoulder. But then she abruptly stops and grins to herself.

"I do have horologium with me…" She whispers, placing a hand over the quivering silver key.

* * *

><p><strong>Raven: Uhmmm… let me just say that this chapter got too long so I chopped it up into two parts. This is the part where Lucy obviously defeats Gajeel, and where the real story begins… The second part is when-<strong>

**Happy: Aye sir!**

**Raven: Hey! I wasn't even done talking!**

**Lucy: Bye guys! Til' the next chapter!**

**Raven: How dare y-**

**(*the tv turns off*)**


	5. 04: II Identity revealed

**(*TV blinks on. Pink gas poofs out of nowhere, and beams of light fill the room. Flashy music plays, and suddenly, Lucy is at the center of the stage)**

**Lucy: hello minna-san! I'm Lucy Heartfilia, and I'm back with Raven-sama to bring you Part 2 of Chapter Four; Black Rose… **

**Raven: Lucy~ what's with the flashy entrance?**

**Lucy: I like flashy… O.O**

**Raven: Ahm… 0.o? Oh well, here it is: Black Rose = Lucy Heartfilia = new persona**

**Hiro Mashima: Raven doesn't own Fairy Tail, I DO. **

**Raven: where'd you suddenly come from?**

**Hiro Mashima: Japan. **

**Happy: Aye Sir!**

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV:<strong>

"Where in the hell am I? He says…" Horologium states with his usual voice. If you take a closer look though, you'd notice that he's grown large enough to fit 5 people in and strong enough to carry 3 elephants. Inside, Gajeel was lying on a small bed with his whole body wrapped up in bandages.

Lucy was sitting on a log in front of a bon fire while cooking up a deer she caught earlier. She didn't turn around to look at Gajeel, but he could tell that she was smirking. He could feel it in his bones.

"Awake now, eh?" The celestial mage asked, the mocking laughter of beating up Gajeel obvious in her tone of voice.

"Rii~ght… laugh at me, bitchs. He says…" Horologium pronounced in place of the dragonslayer. Lucy chuckled, and placed some of the deer soup in one of the makeshift bowls she carved out of large stones.

"You can leave now, Horologium… thanks for helping me carry that buffoon! I won't be calling you any time soon, so rest up." Lucy smiled at the spirit.

"Okay, bye Lucy-sama!" The spirit bid his goodbye's, and disappeared in a puff of smoke. Gajeel on the other hand, fell on his butt when Horologium disappeared, earning a groan of pain from himself and a rage of laughter from the celestial mage.

"Ahahahaha… I can never get tired of hearing you groaning in pain. I can't believe I've gotten this strong, whoo~ it feels refreshing to finally be able to fight for myself… oh, and beat you." Lucy mutters, smiling at the dragonslayer. Gajeel just stays on the ground and watches the girl. He can't help but smile when he sees her smiling. It was always like that with her smile; anyone who sees it can't help but smile back.

"So~ now that you've fought me, what are you planning to do?" He asks, curious to find out if she has any plans on going back to Fairy Tail. And, he won't admit that she beat the crap out of him.

"I plan on going back to Clover town, and staying as Black Rose. She's the only name I have with no association to Fairy Tail. I should just forget about you, and the guild since it seems like I'm already nobody there." Lucy says, looking at a stone with a sad look on her face.

"Tsk. Are you really Lucy of Fairy Tail? Or are you just a fraud?" Gajeel quotes her earlier words, but changes it with her name. "The Lucy I know would try to make her nakama remember her no matter what. She wouldn't just give up. You've still got me bunny-girl, and Juvia, Wendy, plus the exceeds. Gramps is in on it too!" He tells her, a smirk evident on his lips. Lucy looks at him with a sad glint in her eyes.

"Gajeel… it's not that I've given up," Lucy mutters under her breath. "It's because I don't want them to remember me. When I saw them that day, so happy and… it's just, I can't face them as Lucy anymore." She murmurs, gazing up at the stars.

"Then face them as somebody else. You can change your name, appearance, and attitude. Just come back to Fairy Tail. There are people there who miss you, long for your return. Juvia's different without her love rival, and she even stopped stalking Gray! Wendy misses her older sister, and Charle somehow, says it's different without you.

"Master blames himself for your loss, even though it's obviously not his fault. But the person, or being most affected by your disappearance was Happy. You were like a mother to him… at least return to Fairy Tail and show them that you're okay. That your alive and kicking ass!" Gajeel pep talked Lucy. It was unlike him, but he'd do it anytime for a friend. A friend who's lost…

"Man Gajeel, you've gotten poetic… Levy sure is a good influence on you." Lucy grins, but it didn't reach her eyes. She just sat there, like a statue watching the stars. _Right… I've moved on… I no longer am Lucy of Fairy Tail. I should forget about that weak girl, and live a new life. Be reborn as a new person… a new Lucy… _

"Heh… it pays to spend time with a bookworm. And I should at least look smart in front of my children right?" Gajeel grinned back, giving her a thumb up. Lucy chuckles, and then looks at him.

"Well, even if I did go back to Fairy Tail as someone else, what should I call myself? What's my story? How do I know you and the others who still remember me? Who am I?'' The troubled celestial mage asked the grinning iron dragonslayer.

"Think of a name that has no resemblance to Lucy Heartfilia. A name you think would suit your new persona…" Gajeel says nonchalantly while he reached for a bowl of deer soup Lucy placed on the ground.

"Hmmm… I think I know a name… yes, it should fit… but what about my story? Who am I?" Lucy wondered, slapping the hand of Gajeel with a stick she was holding. "Oi… no touching the food until I say so."

"Fine…" he frowned, rubbing the sore hand Lucy hit. "You can be my cousin… use my last name! It'd be more fun this way… heh." He suggested a smirk on his face. He can't wait to see the look on everybody's faces when they find out he has a cousin… even if it wasn't true, it'd be one heck of a reaction.

"Redfox… oh well, it's a suitable name. But what's my story? And how did you, an iron dragonslayer who was raised by a dragon, have a cousin?" She asks covering the pot made of stone and handing Gajeel his bowl of soup. The dragonslayer thinks for a moment, and looks at Lucy.

"I still remember my past… before Metallicana found me. Deliora scattered my clan, killed some of them too, but I know that I've still got family round Earthland. Still, I don't care about them anymore. So I can just say that I met you at Pergrande Kingdom, and asked you to join my guild since you're a solitary mage." Gajeel said tasting the soup Lucy made. His eyes widen when he tastes it. _The girl placed melted rhodonite in here… _He thought, grinning.

"That works… so I can tell them, IF they ever ask, that I'm your cousin and that I've been living alone ever since Deliora killed off my parents. I use elemental magic, and I'm good at combat. I'm an 18 year old female with black hair, crimson eyes, 3 metal studs on my left ear and a golden loop on my right." As she said these things, a violet glow wraps itself around her, and Gajeel watches as she transforms into the girl she was describing.

A few minutes later, Lucy was nowhere to be found, and in her steed was the black haired, crimson eyed girl. She was wearing Lucy's clothes, but the whip and keys weren't anywhere on her. The swords remained on her back, with the holster still wrapped around her left thigh. She glanced at Gajeel with the same intense look the iron dragonslayer gave her during the Phantom Arc, and smirked.

"What's your name?" Gajeel asks, raising a metal studded brow while he slurps up his soup. Lucy rolls her eyes at him, and takes a bowl for herself.

"I'm not telling you my name… yet, that is. It'll be a surprise for when we get to Fairy Tail. It's a normal name, but it's something that I can live with. So, you'll be good enough for travel in two days… what's say we catch up?" Lucy suggested, giving herself another round of soup.

"I ain't the kind of person to be _catchin' up _with." Gajeel sneered, handing Lucy the bowl. The girl snickered to herself as she placed some small iron rods on his bowl. The man nodded in thanks and ate them.

"Yeah, but you're the kind of person that a girl could beat." She taunted. Gajeel glared at her, and sighed.

"Fine," He said grudgingly. The girl grinned, and sipped some of her soup before sighing.

"How long have you and Levy-chan been together?" She questions, looking at him.

"Half a year" The dragonslayer answers coolly.

"What stage are you in?"

"What do you mean by stage?"

"Holding hands? Hugs? Cuddling?... _kissing? _Or maybe even more than that… eh Gajeel?" She giggled when she saw him blush, and scowled when he threw an iron stick to her face.

"S-stop it." He stuttered, embarrassed to be asked that question. To be honest, they've gone wa~y more than kissing and there was no way in hell he was gonna tell Lucy that. Ever.

"From your silence, I can safely assume that Levy-chan's pregnant. Isn't she?" Lucy theorized. Gajeel's eyes widen and he almost chokes on his snack.

"Hah! I knew it! How far along is she?" Lucy grins, doing a small victory dance.

"Th-three months. Damn you! No one in the guild even knows about it except Natsu and Wendy! How on earth could you have guessed?" Gajeel looks at her with a _what-the-hell-is-she-doing _look.

"Dunno. I just suddenly get or know things… I got it after I beat this psychic mage 3 weeks back. Anyway, congrats on the baby… hope it's not a girl." She glances at him, and looks up at the dark star filled sky.

"Why?" Gajeel asks, wondering why. He thought it would be perfect if the child would be a girl, but it'd be more perfect if he got a boy as a kid.

"Cause she's gonna grow up to have a terrible father." Lucy answers casually. Gajeel's nostrils fume, and he was about to hit her with his free arm.

"What'd you-"

"Relax, I'm just kidding… jeez… you're temper's kinda shortened, hasn't it? Are you menstruating?" She irks him again, this time receiving another iron stick on her face.

"That's it!"

"Gawd Gajeel! I'm just teasing! It's a wonder the guild's still standing til' now, what with it having you, the hothead, and Gray." She mutters to herself, but Gajeel hears it loud and clear.

"Don't place me in the same category as those two idiots."

"Kay, fine. You're in a whole different level as them." She chuckles when she sees him giving her a bad look.

"In a good way… sheesh. Anyway, finish that up while I fix up our camp. It's exactly 9:43 and you need all the rest you can get cause in exactly two days, whether you're healed up or not, we're gonna be travelling to Fairy Tail." Lucy says, standing up. Gajeel just quietly munches on his snack and watched as Lucy _prepared _their camp.

She made a golden seal, and some the earth rose and made a cave-like structure over them. And then there were two cots that made for their beds. Lucy started chanting something and some vines crept over to the cots, making beds.

"Where'd you learn that?" He asks, amazed. He's never seen anyone, even from Fairy Tail, do that and it astounded him as to how Lucy's been all this time.

"Oh, uhmmm… Virgo taught me things back at Edolas." She answered, setting up a wall over the entrance of the make-shift wall. Gajeel nodded, and wondered about how powerful Lucy is now. He guessed that during their fight, she wasn't even using half of her real strength, and it bothered him at how beat up he got.

"Shouldn't you tell me your name now, so that I can get used to calling you that? They could get suspicious…" He said, walking over to his probable side of the cave. It was laid out with metal underneath so he guessed it really was his. He heard Lucy sigh, and some scuffling noises behind him.

"Fine… but don't overuse it." She muttered, placing a large rock over the fire. Instantly, the cave was filled with darkness. But Gajeel could clearly see Lucy making another golden seal with her hands. The top of the cave opened, and they could both see the stars.

"Add my last name too…" He added, sneaking a glance at Lucy who was now lying on her make-shift bed. He saw her breathe deeply and let out a heavy sigh.

"Kourin… Kourin Redfox."

* * *

><p><strong>Raven: Okay~ so there goes Black Rose equals Lucy Heartfilia equals new persona, one of my shortest chapters... I hope you guys liked it! I decided to cut the fourth chapter here and make Lucy's appearance as Kourin at Fairy Tail happen in Chapter Five. Please don't hate me because of that... <strong>

**Teehee~ See you next time! Bye guys! **

**Lucy: Kourin? Why of all names will I be Kourin?**

**Raven: Dunno... the name just came up. I think it suits the Redfox name, doesn't it Gajeel?**

**Gajeel: Hn... I think Levy Redfox sounds better**

**Levy: (*major blushing*) Gajeel... **

**Lucy: Sweet~**

**Natsu: Hey! When will I show up?**

**Raven: Bye guys!**

**Natsu: Why won't you answ-**

**(TV blinks off)**


	6. 05: The Album

**(*TV blinks on*)**

**Raven: Hi~ I'm so happy right now… I'm very thankful for those awesome reviews you gave me. For those who think I might be offended, I'm not! Actually, it made me realize that I've still got a long way to go in writing, and I really hope you guys would help me out!**

**First off, I need to clarify things…**

**It's not that Lucy's THAT powerful, she just got new techniques that trapped Gajeel and didn't allow him to fight back. I believe that he's as strong as Lucy, and can even beat her but she has a lot up her sleeve… which can always take him by surprise. And when did Lucy get Psychic? I didn't write anything of the sort… I just wrote that she gets things and knows things from time to time, but she is NOT psychic. And I know about my grammar, since I'm not that good with it… Anyway, thank you for that VERY critical review… :3**

**I guess that kind of answered most of the questions asked… and if you have any more please leave a review… After all, I can improve the story more if you point out some mistakes and things. **

**Still, love you guys so much! Here's chapter Five… Enjoy~**

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

Mirajane watched as her guild mates performed their daily routines around her. Looking at the request board was Nab, who could never and probably would never; pick the perfect job request for himself. There was the trio; Wakaba, Macao, and Cana all huddled around a table drinking and chatting like drunken people (which they probably were). Romeo was busy training, and harnessing his fire (it was quite adorable, that determined look on his face).

She caught a tuft of blue spiky hair from behind a stack of books, and she guessed it was none other than their resident bookworm: Levy McGarden (turning Redfox if you asked her). Behind the bookworm, were her cheering squad and team: Jet and Droy, discussing matters between themselves and peeking at what Levy was doing from time to time. Reedus was busy painting a portrait of Bisca and Alzack who were holding their newborn baby: little Asuka in between them (awww~).

Natsu and the others (Lisanna, Erza, and Gray) were out on a mission and wouldn't return until later that afternoon. Elfman was out as well, but in another agenda involving a green haired woman who was a member of the Thunder God Tribe. Wendy, Juvia and the exceeds went on an outing and should be back later this day. Gajeel was supposed to be back 2 days ago, but he wasn't the type to get the worried about him.

* * *

><p><strong>Lucy's POV… <strong>_**outside the guild**_

* * *

><p>Gajeel and I stood outside Fairy Tail, discussing some matters that needed to be cleared. When we finished, I looked at the guild's huge double-doors and wondered how they'd react. Would they welcome me as a new member? Would they recognize me? A lot of questions like that buzzed around my mind.<p>

I breathed heavily, and gathered all the courage I could muster. 'It's now or never.' I thought. But before I even got the chance to touch the door, Gajeel already pushed it open, creating a loud _thud_. I sweat dropped at his actions.

"Gajeel, what the hell! Why can't you act like a normal human being for once!" I growled at him but he just grinned at me and placed his arms behind the back of his head.

" Sorry, Couzin. But I really ain't no normal human being. And besides, I gotta find somebody." He said casually as he surveyed the guild. I rolled my eyes, but grinned anyway. I was having fun playing cousin with the idiot, and it calmed me down.

Silence washed over the guild, as they watched us cautiously. Mirajane walked up to Gajeel and smiled.

"Good morning, how may we help you?" She asked in her chirpy voice. Oh right, I forgot to mention that we were both wearing hooded cloaks, so they probably wouldn't recognize him… Gajeel pulls his hood down and smirks at the barmaid.

"Oh! Gajeel, you're back… How was the mission?" Mira asked, as she looked at me. Gajeel shrugged and searched the guild. When he saw the blue hair poking out from the stacks of books, he smirked and walked over there.

I watched as Jet and Droy walked away from their team leader, and wondered why. Maybe they were scared of the iron dragonslayer… That was a huge possibility. I left them alone, and decided looking around the guild.

**Normal POV**

"Hey squirt…" Gajeel said, going behind the table and stack of books. There, he found Levy busy writing something, almost in a trance. "I'm back." He grinned, pulling her up and wrapping his arms around her waist. Levy broke out of her trance and looked up.

"Oh… it's you… OH! It's you, Gajeel! You're back!" She exclaimed, returning the hug. The dragonslayer chuckles, and rested his chin on her head lovingly. At this, Mirajane squealed internally. It was so~ adorable!

"That's what I said, stupid" He grinned as he placed both of his hands on her shoulders. Levy glared at him, but cracked a smile and playfully punched his shoulder. They laughed, and just stared at each other. Gajeel was having a moment of serenity when someone decided to interrupt them.

He turned around slowly and was about to punch the person who dared butt in that precious moment he had with Levy, when he saw that it was Lucy. He lowered the hand he unconsciously raised, and gave her a questioning look.

Everyone watched in awe at whoever that cloaked person might be. Whenever they tried to talk to Levy when they were in that intimate moment, they'd either end up going home in bandages or not going home at all. So it was amazing that this person didn't receive a painful punch to the gut.

"Ooh~ who do you think is under that cloak?" A drunken Macao asked his companions. Cana shrugged and gulped more of her beer.

"Maybe it's his mother…" Wakaba wondered aloud, earning a giggle from Mirajane who was listening. She watched as the cloaked person whispered something to Gajeel, and then left. Levy quirked an eyebrow and gave him a questioning look.

"You'll find out soon…" he just answered as he moved behind her, and stood watch. Lucy told him that she was going somewhere, and that she'd be back in the afternoon. Wherever she was going, he guessed that it was important by the look she had on her face.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Meanwhile…<strong>_

* * *

><p>After she left the guild, she didn't know where to go… At first, she thought of visiting her old apartment. But what good would that do? It'd just cause herself pain from the memories that she'd probably remember. Then, Lucy thought about going to the lake, but it was just as idiotic as the first idea. The lake held special memories of a certain pink haired dim-wit and his talking cat… and it'd just resurface if she went there.<p>

So she just decided on walking around aimlessly. As she passed by stores, she couldn't help but buy things. Lucy guessed that no matter what happened, she couldn't erase the fact that she was a shopaholic, and a book lover. She giggled when people stared at her luggage which comprised of a trolley that carried 10 different colored paper-bags, some paper boxes, wrapped items, and crates filled with books she dreamed of buying before but never had the money to.

After a while of just strolling about, she found herself standing on the pathway leading to a wide area with a Sola tree standing at the center. A voice played in her mind, reminding her of a distant memory…

_Hey Lucy! Let's make a tree house here! It'd be great, and it's our little secret with Happy!_

She smiled, saddened by that thought. It was the path leading to where they built the tree house. Their _third home… _It irked her to see how it has been after her absence after all; it was her who always took care of things there. Natsu and Happy always managed to destroy things wherever they were. It was up to her to clean up after them… But that was the past who knows; maybe he brought a girl there. _Maybe he brought Lisanna to that place… _

Shaking her head, she gave in to the temptation of taking a look. Pulling the trolley behind her, she followed the path and saw the tree. It was still standing, and thankfully, so was the tree house. She left her baggage behind the tree, and leaped onto a branch above her. When she looked up, expecting things to be as messy as it should have been, a gasp escaped her mouth.

It was perfectly clean and organized. The memoirs Natsu always collected were neatly set up by the wall in front of her. The lounge area was absent of scattered food, and was even sparkling! The books she left were stacked and arranged by height on a shelf near the window, with her table directly under it. She walked towards the _kitchen _(an extension of the _lounge area _just separated by a wall made of wood) and found it clean as well. Everything was clean! Even the floor had no speck of dust on it! (This was impossible, if you ask me)

Climbing the branches to the _second floor, _Lucy went to check on the _bedroom. _She smirked when she found out that it was as messy as when she last saw it, maybe even worse. Scanning it, she nodded. Yep, definitely worse… of course, that was highly likely since it's been more than a year already.

She kicked a pile of clothes out of her way, and stopped when she saw the red leather bound album she and Natsu bought together on the anniversary of when they first met. A sad smile forms on her lips as she picked it up slowly. Flipping it open, she caught the new improvements to the album.

The first page had on Natsu's, Happy's and her picture… she wondered why it was still there even when the guild claimed they didn't know a girl named Lucy Heartfilia. And it bothered her that _**blond, busty chick **_was written below her photo. It just meant that he really didn't know who she was.

As she turned the pages, she smiled at the pictures that were there. The guild photo was on the second page, Natsu eating some food greedily with Happy munching on some fish. The day they began making the tree house… Natsu and Happy sleeping on her bed. Every picture they ever had together, and with the guild before she got stuck at Edolas was there.

On the last pages of the album was where the owner could write their thoughts and notes. She began reading all the nonsense she wrote there before, and stopped when she caught a new handwriting…

_I've been feeling weird ever since Lisanna came back… like something was wrong, and that someone was missing, but I can't point out who it is. And the pictures in here are weird too. I don't remember meeting anyone who's blond and has a big chest, but she's always in the pictures. Even though I don't know her, it's like she was someone important. And she seems like an awesome person, of course, because she's from Fairy Tail… probably. _

_I brought her here in the tree house, but I think it wasn't one of the best ideas I ever came up with. She keeps changing things, and insists on throwing away the entire blond girl's stuff. I didn't want her to, of course. It seemed wrong, but I let her do what she wanted to the tree house as long as she didn't touch blond girl's things. I also told her that the bedroom was off limits to her. _

_Oh, and Lisanna keeps bugging me to show her this album. But I feel like I shouldn't because the blond haired busty chick might not like it. I dunno though, why I feel like I know her when I really don't. I wish I did… _

Another sad smile made its way to her face, and her eyes started watering. _Typical Natsu. I wish you'd remember me too… _she thought sadly, as she continued looking around. Her clothes were still on the drawers, and most of her stuff were moved up here. Maybe Natsu really didn't allow Lisanna to throw her things away, and she was thankful for that. Natsu cared about her, even when he practically didn't know who she was.

Deciding that there was nothing else to look at, she took the album and leapt out of the tree house from the bedroom window. She was directly in front of her baggage, and she began walking away. She didn't notice a tear on her precious cloak as she disappeared through the trees.

* * *

><p><strong>Magnolia Station… after lunch<strong>

* * *

><p>"Urgh… curse you… train *barf*" Natsu groaned as he got off the train with Lisanna and Gray. Erza went to gather her things from the freight area, so she couldn't see how miserable he was now. Gray smirked at Natsu's stupid look, while Lisanna tried comforting him but it didn't help him at any bit.<p>

"J-just leave me al-lone for a wh-while… *barf*" Natsu sputtered, leaning onto a pillar for help. He didn't know why his motion sickness was worse than before. Usually, when his feet hit the ground, he'd have already challenged Gray to a fight or he would've run off to the guild ahead of the others.

"Maybe if you hadn't eaten those spicy tacos and burritos back at the inn, you wouldn't be this sick." Gray pointed out, earning a weak glare from the fire dragonslayer. He shrugged his shoulders. It wasn't his fault the idiot decided to eat ten burritos and a bunch of tacos before they boarded the train. In fact, he even warned the dim-wit. He was that awesome.

"Maybe if you shut up, I'd feel better." Natsu countered, all fired up. He felt ultimately better, now that he had enough time to recollect his bearings and because he just couldn't stand looking weaker than the ice bastard.

"I see all of you are set. Let's go." Erza appears out of nowhere with her gigantic load behind her. Instantly, the two rivals were in buddy-buddy mode. Lisanna sweat dropped, but smiled anyway. It was amusing to see how those two would behave the instant they see Erza. No, amusing was an understatement, it was hilarious!

Then, the four of them started walking towards the guild, excited to be back. The last mission they did took them a week and that got the team exhausted so they had to rest in an inn for a few days taking their return home longer than expected. Natsu ran ahead, wanting to visit the tree house first.

"See ya' guys at the guild! Tell happy I got him a surprise! I'm going someplace else! Don't follow me Lisanna!" he called over his shoulder. Erza watched his retreating figure, thinking about the delicious strawberry shortcake she would ask Mirajane to prepare for her; Gray rolled his eyes, while Lisanna was frowning. Various questions pestered her mind. Questions like: _why didn't he want me to follow him? Where is he going? _Many more questions like that bothered her…

"Where do you think that idiot's going?" Gray asked aloud, walking alongside the two women. Erza shrugged, still caught up in her daydream about cakes. Lisanna on the other hand sighed heavily, still troubled. She felt like something big was coming up, something that would destroy her current relationship with Natsu. But she just didn't know what.

* * *

><p><strong>Tree House… 10 minutes later (and four hours after Lucy left)<strong>

* * *

><p>Natsu hastily leapt up the largest branch of the tree, excited to be back. He threw his pack on the floor and rushed towards the wall that held all his memoirs… He and Happy secretly called it the <em>"memory wall" <em>because it held almost all the memories they shared together and with the busty chick. Often times, while looking at the stuff gathered there, he'd catch himself drifting into these weird dreams about the blond girl. Like that one time he dreamt of her being sick on the Sakura Festival and he was sad that she couldn't go and see the trees so he did something crazy and uprooted it, placed it on a pot, and sent it floating down the river to her home. That was some crazy dream…

As he entered the tree house, he caught an unfamiliarly familiar scent but it was somewhat faint and fading. It was a scent he knew but he didn't know what or who owned it. He followed the smell, and found himself walking up the stairs to the bedroom. The smell was strongest there, and it stopped on the window. He found a torn piece of black cloth that had some kind of purple thing on its edge but it wasn't complete. When he smelt it again, it had the same familiar smell plus some mixture of a woman's perfume.

"Somebody was here… he mumbled taking a close look around. Everything seemed normal, except for the pile of clothes he dropped on top of the red boo-

"No…" he whispered to himself, taking a step forward. The book wasn't underneath the pile of clothes. He threw them away just in case it was kicked forward, but there was nothing there. "No." He muttered, searching frantically all around for the book. _Maybe he placed it someplace else. Maybe Happy came here while he was gone and forgot to put it back under the pile._ "No!" he exclaimed, tearing the bedroom apart.

That book was the only thing he had that tied his memories to the blond girl. And if she were here, she'd probably kick his behind if he ever lost it. It was important to him, just like Igneel's scarf. He didn't even know why that was, but he just knew it.

Natsu desperately ran downstairs and looked for it there. _Maybe he didn't really hide it under the heap of clothes. Maybe he was just blind, because it had to be in the tree house. _He was on the verge of tears when he remembered the torn piece of cloth he had in his hand.

He stared at it for a moment, and then come to a decision. _The piece of cloth and that familiar smell… his book disappearing. It has to be related. He'd track down the person who was here earlier and demand to know what happened to his book. He had to. He needed to._

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><p><strong>Fairy Tail Guild…<strong>

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><p>"How was your mission?" Mirajane asked as she handed Erza her cake. The scarlet haired woman thanked Mirajane, and began eating her treat. The guild acted on a day-to-day basis and almost everyone was present. Elfman, Evergreen, Wendy, the exceeds, Natsu, Gray and Juvia weren't around.<p>

"It went smoothly, as always. How was the guild while I was gone? I heard that Master went on another one of the guild master meetings?" She asked, savoring the taste of her favorite flavored cake. As always, Mirajane was the best at making cakes. Nothing could compare to this, aside from another one of her delightful pastries.

"Oh, it was quite boring without the three of you. And yes, master did go to that meeting, in fact he is on his way back here now." Mira informed her. Erza nodded, and took another bite of her cake. They continued talking about the guild and its members when they heard the guild grow silent. They both turned to look at what caused it, when they saw Gajeel walking towards them with a very beautiful woman who looked almost like him.

She had shiny ebony hair that was pulled back in a tight ponytail. Her eyes were an intense crimson, and she had blood red lips. This woman wore delinquent like clothes, and emanated an aura of fear… just like the iron dragonslayer did. It was Lucy.

"Ooh~ are you the person earlier this morning?" Mirajane chirped, smiling at Lucy. Erza observed her, a spoon in her mouth with its handle sticking out. She sensed a powerful aura from this girl, and she was deciding if it was good or bad.

"Yes. I want to join your guild. May I?" Lucy asked, wearing an emotionless mask. The guild watched curiously. This girl was hot, and they wondered why she entered the guild with Gajeel. Mirajane's smile widened if possible and she nodded her head.

"May I know who you are first?" The barmaid asked. Lucy glanced at Gajeel and smirked. The guild saw this, and all had a questioning look on their faces. Levy just smiled, already informed of who the stranger was. Gajeel called her out earlier to discuss _things, _and that's when she met her.

"Kourin Redfox." She answered. Mirajane smiled at her again, and was about to go and fetch the stamp when something clicked in her mind. Everyone realized it at the same time.

"Redfox?" They asked eyes wide. Fear passed through all those who've seen Gajeel's wrath.

"Yeah, I'm his cousin…" Lucy said, acting like it was normal. Outside; she was cool and collected, but inside; she was giggling like crazy and having fun.

"WHAT?" The guild exclaimed in a chorus, their eyes growing wider. All of them stood up and eyed Lucy (most of the men ogling her). Mirajane was staring at her, and even Erza dropped her spoon.

"Well I'll be… Gajeel's got himself a cousin! It's the end of the world!" Cana guffawed. Some of the men sweat dropped, realizing what Cana just said. Gajeel=Demon… therefore… Relative of Gajeel=Demon.

"You have a freaking hot cousin and you never told us?" One of the men of Fairy Tail exclaimed, earning an iron club on their face. Some people laughed nervously, walking out of the iron dragonslayer's view to avoid THAT.

"Is this true Gajeel? You never told us you had a cousin…" Mirajane wondered, still quite surprised. She never expected this, and never even thought of such things. _Aren't dragonslayer's raised by Dragon's? Dragons hate humans too, don't they? So how… _

"You never asked." He just answered. She nodded in agreement, and glanced at Erza. She was quiet the whole time, still observing the ebony haired girl named Kourin.

"Well then, I'm going to ask now. How do you have a cousin? Weren't you raised by a dragon?" The barmaid asked, getting very curious. The whole guild went silent again, and they put off their screams of terror. They wanted to know it too. They were curious. And this was huge gossip.

"Deliora killed off my clan, me and some of my relatives escaped. I found Metallicana. Forgot about the family I still had around. Found out Kourin was still alive, took her with me. Now I want her to join my guild." Gajeel muttered, looking bored.

"Ahh…" The guild member's nodded their heads. Some pitied Gajeel, some didn't care. Levy's eyes were wet, since she never knew that story. All he ever told her about his old family was that they were dead. Mira was wiping her tears with a napkin, while Erza still observed Lucy.

"Th-that's so…" Mirajane stopped, her tears still present. Gajeel and Lucy sweat dropped, while the guild thought about Gajeel's past. It was saddening. But they couldn't do anything about it.

"Don't get so emotional! Just take her in already! We haven't got all afternoon! And we gotta find her a place to stay." The iron dragonslayer's eyes twitched in somewhat irritation or something close to that. Instantly, Mirajane's tears disappeared, and it was replaced with a wide grin.

"Well then, what color would you like your stamp to be?" She asked, disappearing behind the bar counter. Lucy thought for a moment, and grinned. She looked at Gajeel's mark, and he got the message. He gave her a knowing smirk, approving.

"I want it black, on my left arm just below my shoulder." Lucy answered. Mira then reappeared after a while, with the stamp on her hands. Lucy offered her left arm to Mirajane. The barmaid stamped the guild sign on her with a silent pop and shimmer. Lucy glanced at her new mark, and grinned showing it off to Gajeel. He in turn, waved it off but was kind of happy for bunny-girl. She got to be back on her old guild and she could start a new, awesomer (I know, don't correct me) life.

"Welcome to the guild!" Mira exclaimed. Most of the members cheered, but the others were still doubtful of her. Cana raised her barrel in acceptance, while Macao and Wakaba each wore crooked smiles. Nab nodded approvingly, whilst Freed smiled at her. Bixlow did his weird tongue thing while his babies were chanting: welcome continuously in their high pitched voices. Laki gave Lucy thumbs up, with Kinana right next to her who offered a warm and gentle smile. Romeo was ecstatic to know what her magic was, and even wanted to fight her because she looked strong. Everyone shrugged at his Natsu-like behavior but smiled anyway. Lisanna came out from the infirmary and heard from her older sister about the new member. She greeted Lucy, and even got the chance to chat with the girl. Even if she was the one who did most of the talking.

"So how old are you Kourin-san?" Lisanna asked as she sat in front of the iron dragonslayer's cousin. They were seated in one of the guild's round tables, Gajeel standing behind Levy and Lucy who sat right next to each other.

"18" Lucy answered, giving off the aura that she didn't want to have a conversation with anyone. Gajeel smirked at Lisanna while Levy smiled brightly. Lisanna's smile faltered, but only for a bit and it reappeared a moment later.

"Oh, we're the same age! So, where are you staying?" She tried to make a conversation. But before Lucy could answer, the guild doors were kicked open. Everyone took a look, and saw Natsu standing there with his eyes blazing fire. He sniffed around and stopped, looking directly at Lucy.

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><p><strong>I think I'm addicted to line-breaks... I just think I placed too much here... anyway, that is the end of Chapter Five. Ooh~ I just love cliff-hangers… anyway, I hope the guys who commented on my grammar and the POWER thing plus the PSYCHIC thing are satisfied. If you still got questions or clarifications, feel free to leave a review or PM me! I'd always be ready to answer your messages. Plus, don't be shy to leave harsh reviews. I'm open to them! Thanks! <strong>


	7. 06: Making Bets

**DISCLAIMER: I'm going to place it here, since I believe that I can't fit it anywhere down below… so, I don't own Fairy Tail… HIRO MASHIMA DOES!**

**Raven: hey there… I forgot to turn of the television so that cost me a lot on electricity. Anyway~ OH MY FREAKING GOD! I can't believe you guys! You're sooo awesome! This story's already more than a hundred reviews? Are you serious? I mean, I wasn't even expecting to receive at least 40 reviews… but 135? I LOVE YOU GUYS! **

**Soo~ some people asked why nobody recognized Lucy when she entered the guild… remember the part 2 of chapter four? When she was transforming into someone else? Aside from that, the rest of the explanation shall be, erhm, explained during the next chapters. **

**And - forgive me for making Lucy sound too powerful. I guess I rushed things a bit, sorry again. But I really do hope you get comfortable with the idea, because I need her to be stronger than before to make the story work. And then there will be some parts of the story where I will be placing bits and pieces of how she grew. **

**REPLY CORNER:**

**Chrys stone: **you are an awesome person. Thank you for getting what I was trying to say, at that time I couldn't put a word to how she knew stuff… now I know, it's INTUITION (I'm so stupid, O.O) And thank you for thinking it's not a bad thing for Lucy to be able to kick Gajeel's ass, also, I believe that a punching scene would occur soon. Because of your awesome review, you made my day (which is Sunday by the way). Thanks again for the review.

**TitaniaScarlet: **Oh God. I just realized that I confused Evergreen's dress from her hair! How silly of me. Anyway, thank you for that correction… LoL, that comment you made about Freed was hilarious… teehee. Finally! I found someone who loves line breaks! Wee~ (twirling around with me rolling chair)

**TheRandomGirl: **I also like Lisanna, but nor for Natsu. And I'm going to apologize ahead of time, since I'm going to be making her a very bad guy… er… girl. Lisanna doesn't recognize Lucy at that time because of the old woman. She did something to everyone, but that would be explained further in the story. Thanks for the review!

**birthdaychat: **Wow! Thanks! The story LOVES you too! Hahaha… Ooh~ and I'm glad you like the idea of Gajeel and Lucy becoming friends because I like that idea too! I hope it does happen. And yes, Edo-Lucy and Edo-Natsu liked each other. But when Edo-Natsu became sort of close with Lucy Heartfilia, Edo-Lucy kinda got jealous so she acted like a bitch around him… that's when he got tired of her attitude and saw Lucy Heartfilia in a different light (drama much?) But if that wasn't clear in the story, I hope it's clear now.

**vampire-fetish15: **hahaha, I'm sorry but I really like cliff-hangers… they always make it fun to write, plus it makes you want to read more! XD I also think old Lucy is cool, but I HAD to change Lucy for this story. Don't worry though, I'm not gonna go too far with her new persona… Lucy took it because – it will be explained down below. And of course she knows that Natsu has a great sense of smell!

**EminaRukiax: **The fic loves you too for loving it… and… Awwww… you think I write professionally… thank you so much… (tears of joy). I'm also sorry for making you uncomfortable with this new Lucy… I just need her to be that strong and different. She might end up going back to the old Lucy we all know and love, and she might not. Still, please understand… Thanks. And I'm really gonna update soon because of you people!

**To The others: **I'm sorry for not adding you here, cause I think I took up too much time or maybe space or maybe I was just too lazy to answer yours (nervously laughs)… but I do want to thank you for reading and reviewing my story! You make me so happy that it gives me the energy to write faster than usual… thanks again!

**AND WITH THAT, I GIVE YOU CHAPTER SIX!**

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><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

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><p>"So how old are you Kourin-san?" Lisanna asked as she sat in front of the iron dragonslayer's cousin. They were seated in one of the guild's round tables with Gajeel standing behind Levy and Lucy who sat right next to each other.<p>

"18" Lucy answered, giving off the aura that she didn't want to have a conversation with anyone. Gajeel smirked at Lisanna while Levy smiled brightly. Lisanna's smile faltered, but only for a bit and it reappeared a moment later.

"Oh, we're the same age! So, where are you staying?" She tried to make a conversation. But before Lucy could even think of answering, the guild doors were kicked open. Everyone took a look, and saw Natsu standing there with his eyes blazing fire. He sniffed around and stopped, looking directly at Lucy. Natsu stomped towards her and pointed an accusing finger.

"You! You took it!" he exclaimed, shouting at her face. Lucy backed up; irritated that her personal space was trespassed by the idiot. The whole guild watched with anticipation. It wasn't everyday Natsu would yell at a person, and accuse them of something. Especially to a person they were sure he never even met. Gajeel was beside her in an instant, acting like an overprotecting cousin. Levy was confused, Lisanna was shocked, and Mirajane was frowning.

"What the hell are you talking about? I don't even know you." Lucy pointed out, pushing him away from herself. Natsu stared at her, and then sniffed her. It was exactly like the smell from the piece of cloth, and the scent led here. He wondered who she was, and what she was doing in his guild but that was cast aside by his anger.

"You took my book!" he blamed her, his hand shooting up and pointing at her again. Gajeel glared at him, shoving away his hand. The iron dragonslayer was pissed, and other than that, he was enjoying acting like an overprotective cousin. It was fun. Very Fun.

"Stop accusing bun- er - Kourin. What book are you talking about anyway? I didn't know you could read…" Gajeel taunted him, relieved that he caught himself from saying bunny-girl. Natsu's nose flared and fire started forming around his fists. Mirajane saw this and interjected before anything else happened. If you're wondering about Erza, she left earlier to meet up with Jellal.

"Natsu… she's a new member in this guild. She just got here today with Gajeel, so I don't understand why you're accusing her of taking your book. What kind of book is it?" She asked, placing a hand on his shoulder. Slowly, the flames disappeared and the fire dragonslayer's anger lessened. He still glared back at Gajeel though, and narrowed his eyes at Lucy.

"I know you took my book, and I'm going to take it back." He spat, ignoring Mira's earlier questions, and just focusing on the new girl. She was familiar looking, and the smell she had was driving his mind nuts. It was a mix of something sweet and spicy. Her eyes, even if they had that edge on it, reminded him of the blond busty chick. He didn't even know why. Blonde girl had chocolate brown eyes that were round and kind. This chick had intense red eyes that were slanted upwards.

"I told you, I don't know what you're accusing me of! What the hell is this book you keep mentioning anyway?" Lucy grumbled, slightly amused at his obvious irritation and anger towards her. She really knew what that book was. It was the album. She knew he would be able to follow her scent, but she didn't know why the album seemed important to Natsu. It wasn't like he knew who the blond girl was anyway. Lisanna watched Natsu and a thought came to her mind. He always reacted that way whenever she touched one particular book.

"Is it the album Natsu? The red leather bound album you got from someone you don't even remember?" Lisanna asked, not knowing that she hit a sore spot on Lucy's heart. The celestial mage looked anywhere but Natsu, and Gajeel caught on this. He secretly cursed at Lisanna, and wanted to just tell her something that might make her end up crying, but he wasn't that insensitive. After all, what if someone did that to Levy?

"Yeah! It's not in the tree house! And this person's smell was all over the place when I got there!" Natsu shouted, folding his arms over his chest with a scowl on his face. Lucy stiffened. How would she explain that?

"It was? Kourin-san, is that true?" Lisanna was curious now. Most of the guild on the other hand went back to what they were doing, deeming their discussion boring. Mirajane stayed with them, standing beside the table.

"Yeah, so? I found that tree house while looking around. And I didn't take anything there, much less an album. Stop accusing me pinky!" Lucy answered with venom in her voice. Natsu shot up from that retort, and his eyes were back at where they started.

"My hair's not pink! It's red! You- you-" he couldn't find anything to taunt her with. She was undoubtedly beautiful, and he knew that much. She even dressed like a ninja, and he loved ninja's. There was nothing on her that he could tease.

"What? Cat got your tongue?" Lucy smirked, satisfied with her effortless victory. Natsu was about to yell at her, when a thought came to him.

"Fight me." He challenged, serious with his dare. He was going to make a bet. Lucy arched an eyebrow and stood up, eyeing him. She found resolve in his eyes, and she didn't think he'd back down.

"Sure…" She answered coolly, earning worried glances from some members of the guild. They didn't know her strength, but they did know that Natsu was one hell of a monster when he fought. Lisanna glanced at the two, and her face twitched nervously. What was she going to do? She never guessed that, that album was so~ important to Natsu that he'd want to fight Kourin-san. They didn't even know her magic. When she looked at Mirajane, she was surprised when the older take-over mage wore a smile of pride.

"Well, if I were you… I'd rather not fight in here." She smiled at the two, giving them pats on the back. Lisanna gave her a curious look, to which the elder Strauss shook her head as a response. Natsu smirked and ran outside, excited to fight this new person. He didn't even know who she was, but she seemed strong. That was all that counted. And he wanted to make a bet with her. Lucy sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. She groaned, and shut her eyes tightly. She never meant to fight Natsu, but it's came to this and she knew him enough to conclude that he'd have his fight with her no matter what.

She followed him soon after speaking with Gajeel, and giving the people around her a reassuring smile. Gajeel smirked, well aware of bunny-girl's abilities. Levy was quite surprised with herself when she realized how worried she was for the new member and Gajeel's cousin. They just met after all, and it startled her about how fond she was of the girl. Kourin-san seemed like someone she would get along with, and she had an inkling suspicion that Kourin-san loved books. She didn't even know where that came from.

When Lucy stepped outside, she found Natsu already burning, literally burning, with excitement and anger. He was so going to win this, and he was gonna force her to give his album back. Lucy shrugged, and stood there. Using her keys and whip would be out of the question, and all she had left were the swords, daggers, and kunai's she got from the old woman who helped her back at Clover Town.

"Bring it." She taunted Natsu, unsheathing the swords from her back. They made a silent sound, making it even more exciting. The guild members came out of the guild to watch the fight, and were very much excited as well. After all, battles occurred daily in Fairy Tail, but this battle was a different and no one can determine who will win. There was a huge possibility that Natsu would, but since they didn't know Kourin's strength, they couldn't assume he would.

"I'm all fired up. And I wanna make a bet" He sneered, slamming his fist into his palm and charging at her with a battle cry of his own. Lucy raised her eyebrows, and also ran forward, her arms behind her like the way ninja's ran with the blades hitting the ground making sparks as she bounded forward. The guild fell silent as Natsu's fist clashed with Lucy's blades. Both skidded backwards, and everyone saw that each had gained a wound of their own.

Lucy had burns all over her hands while Natsu received cuts all over his fists. He growled, and was about to attack her again when he was caught off guard by a pain on his hip. He looked down to see that a dagger's hilt was sticking out from it with blood trickling down his trousers. He hissed and pulled it out of his hip, burning the wound closed as not to lose too much blood. Natsu glanced up and saw that the new girl was now covering her hands with the bandage around her arms.

The fight has just begun, and the first attack has been made. It seemed like they were on par, but that was only the beginning. Lucy smirked while her head was bowed low. She was very happy. Back then, when she was still the naïve little Lucy Heartfilia, she would never have dreamed of being able to fight Natsu. Now, there was even the possibility of her beating him. She was satisfied, and was all fired up as well.

"That all you got? And what kind of bet?" She goaded him, earning a fire ball just inches away from her face, and it would've been burned to crisps if she hadn't dodged it. At the same time, they ran forward with their own distinct cries of battle. Natsu was about to kick her on her abdomen, but she leaped up avoiding the blow. He was not finished yet, as he punched her on the shoulder, landing the attack. Lucy suppressed a cry of pain, and stumbled backwards. The guild cheered for Natsu, but was worried about Kourin. She seemed fine when she stood up, even wearing a smirk on her face as she brushed off the dirt on her clothes.

"That all you got? If I win, you give me back my album" Natsu copied her, cracking his knuckles. It was just starting, and he was really getting all riled up. Lucy grinned, sheathing one of the swords and running forward. She slashed her sword forward, barely missing him by a centimeter as he jumped back. Natsu then inhales deeply and puts both hands over his mouth. Lucy caught on this and leapt somewhere safe.

"Fire dragon's roar!" Natsu yelled, aiming it at Lucy. She ran side ward, trying to avoid it but Natsu just followed her until he caught up and got her legs. Everyone gasped, and waited for the dust cloud to subside. When it did, they all wore worried faces.

Lucy was on the ground curled up in a fatal position, and it was obvious how badly burned she was. You could clearly see the flesh, almost as if it was cooked meat and blood was oozing out of it continuously. Levy made a move to run up to her, but Gajeel stopped her. He shook his head and squeezed her shoulder.

"This is their fight." Gajeel said his mouth set in a straight line. As much as he wanted to run up there and help Lucy, he respected her as a fighter and his friend. Levy nodded sorrowfully, and watched the poor ebony haired mage. She began to stand, and more blood trickled down her thighs and legs. She stumbled as she struggled, placing both hands on the part of her thigh that wasn't burned, to rest. Her breathing was heavy, and when she looked up there were gashes and cuts around her face.

Everyone watched her with worry and pride in their eyes as she ignored her state and began staggering towards her sword which was meters away from her. Natsu was amazed at the girl, and he acknowledged her strength. But he still felt anger towards her, anger for denying ever taking his album when all the clues and signs pointed to her.

Lucy stopped walking when she reached her sword, and all the people watching caught the small grin on her face. Suddenly, a golden light enveloped her appendages and in a flash of that intense golden light, her burns and wounds were healed.

"WHAT!" They gasped, leaning forward to try and get a closer look. It was gone. Her lesions were gone. But the shiny skin of the healed burn was ever present on her legs. Natsu gaped at her. Gajeel smirked, already aware of that ability. Levy racked her brain for any magic that could have done that. Lisanna was open-mouthed. Mirajane watched in amazement.

Lucy now looked as fresh as when she just joined the guild, the only thing off about her appearance was her burned and torn clothes. She smirked at everyone and picked the sword from the ground.

"What? Do I have something on my face?" Lucy asked, resting the blade of her sword on her shoulder while she placed a hand on her hip. They were giving her weird looks, but she couldn't blame them. She was shocked to the bones when she first learned about the glowing golden light from Loke.

"Y-you…" Most of them stuttered. Well, this was the magic world anyway, so they should get used to surprising things like that. And there were a lot of magic types they didn't know about so maybe this was one of them.

"Yeah-Yeah… come on pinky-kun… I was just getting started. So… if I win?" Lucy taunted him, even if she knew he was surely going to win. Natsu smirked, and fire blazed around him.

"Oh yeah… this is what I've been waiting for… bring it! If you win, I'll be your slave for a month! Which would never happen." he yelled, putting one fist behind him and running full power towards her. Lucy did the same, as she sheathed her sword and decided to use her fists.

She threw a quick jab that hit him square in the abdomen and sent him a few centimeters back. He sneered and hit her on the side. Lucy wasn't able to dodge it, but she took the momentum of the impact to her advantage. She grabbed his fist and made him punch his own face, and then as swift as she did this, she revealed a hidden dagger from her arm bandages and was about to slash at him when fire licked her skin.

Natsu melted the blade with his fire, and kicked her on the stomach. Lucy grunted and flew back. She landed first on her left hand, and pushed herself up and landed feet first on the ground. She didn't waste time and ran towards him, aiming four kunai's towards Natsu, each one burned and melted by the fire dragonslayer. But this was expected by Lucy, as she made a move to kick his feet off the ground. Natsu hadn't anticipated this and fell flat on his face as Lucy took an arm and twisted it behind him. She settled behind him with his body in between her legs and she leaned down to smirk at him.

"Yo…" She whispered to his ear. Natsu shivered, but he was not gonna give up that easily. He let out a small flame where Lucy's hands held him and startled her. She dropped to his back, and Natsu took this as a chance to turn things around. He grabbed Lucy's wrists and pulled her off the ground and then pinning her there afterwards.

Everyone who was watching made hooting sounds and whistling sounds. The fight was one hell of a brawl, and they thought it ended pretty nicely. Kourin-san was probably on par with Gray, and maybe even stronger than him and they even hadn't figure out her magic yet. The only magical ability she showed was her power to heal herself and that didn't give them any hint. Now, most of the men were grinning like crazy at Natsu while the women (except Cana) were embarrassed by the position the two battling mages were in.

Lucy lay on the ground glaring at Natsu, who was on top of her wearing a mischievous and a little angry grin. He held her hands above her head with his right hand and had his left one placed near her right ear. Her legs were trapped between his and she couldn't even mover them. Lisanna had a jealous look on her features, while Mirajane was gushing. Gajeel smirked at bunny-girl and glanced down at Levy who was blushing.

"What the hell do you think you're doing? Huh? Pinky?" Lucy growled at him, trying to free her hands. But he held them so tight that she feared she would have a bruise there later on. Natsu narrowed his eyes at her.

"I win. Give me my book." He said, putting his face merely inches away from hers. Lucy turned to look the other way and tried to hide the blush on her cheeks. _Sheesh! After a long time of not seeing this idiot, I still blush like school girl when he gets too close! What's wrong with me! _Lucy thought, shutting her eyes closed.

"The fight's not over yet…" She hissed, trying ever so hard to get free. She tried squirming away but when she glanced at Natsu, he was smirking at her. A smirk that told her that no matter how much she tried to escape, she never would be able to.

"Oh really? Cause I think it is…" he teased her. He felt somehow drawn to this girl, and even if he was still angry at her, he confessed to himself that he probably could never stay mad at her for long. He wondered why that was, and shrugged it off.

"Well that's what you think!" Lucy yelled, head butting him while he was still in that dazed state. Natsu let go of her for a second but that was all she needed. She clutched his own wrists, pulled, and forced him down. She then quickly unsheathed her swords and crossed them over his neck. She placed her leg over both his legs and pressed down so that he couldn't escape.

Everyone stared at them, and forced themselves not to laugh at the surprised look on Natsu's face. But they were also shocked. Gajeel laughed mockingly at Natsu. Mirajane was still gushing and giggling. Levy was blushing, but she had on a smile. Lisanna… she was over the top jealous.

"Now… the fight is over…" Lucy said, glaring at him. This time, it was Natsu who was blushing. He didn't think she could easily push him down and pin him to the ground, but he didn't think anyone could fight him like that. He didn't even get to use most of his tricks on her, but she was a girl and didn't they say she was a new member of the guild? He could never intentionally hurt his family, even if they were new.

"Tss… this isn't over." He clenched his teeth. He was actually beaten by a girl who barely used her magic, and now he had to comply with their bet. He was so sure he was going to win that he even offered himself as a slave. Oh the humiliation! He was sure Gajeel and Gray would never let him live it down.

"Sure it is." She stood up. She then smiled at him and offered her hand. He stared up at her and then grinned, accepting it. They both stand there looking at each other, and then they laughed.

"I can't believe I got beat by a girl!" He chuckled, dusting himself. He smiled as watched her re-bandaging her arms and legs. She really was beautiful, and it was his first time appreciating someone's beauty… aside from the blond girl in the album. And then he suddenly remembered the album.

"Hey, uhmm-" He paused since he didn't know her name. Lucy noticed that.

"Ah, Kourin Redfox." She filled in. He nodded and was about to continue what he was about to say when her name replayed in her mind. _Kourin Redfox. Redfox. _

"REDFOX!" He shouted, earning himself a spank on the head from out of nowhere. Suddenly, they realized that the guild was surrounding them. And when he looked behind himself, he saw Gajeel smirking at him. He instantly knew what the iron dragonslayer was thinking.

"Yeah. Redfox. Problem?" Gajeel sneered at him. Natsu looked from the black haired girl, and then to Gajeel. Kourin Redfox. Gajeel Redfox. Redfox.

"Wait… you never told me you were married!" Natsu exclaimed in surprise. Everyone sweat dropped, and Natsu earned himself a boot mark on his face from Gajeel, a slap on the face from Levy, and a large bulge on his head from the Lucy.

"We're not married dumbass! We're cousins! COUSINS!" Lucy growled at him. She was ultimately taken by surprise from his idiocy. She thought that from the length of time she was gone, he would've at least gotten smarter. Everyone ended up laughing at the end, and walked back inside the guild. Lisanna looked at Natsu with sadness in her eyes, but she knew it was her who Natsu loved. That's why they were boyfriend and girlfriend. That's why they lived with each other now. And nothing can change that. She walked inside with the others, and peered behind her. She saw that Natsu and Kourin-san were now having a conversation.

"They're just setline things Lisanna… don't need to get worried. Natsu loves you." Lisanna heard her sister. She instantly blushed and shook her head.

"I'm not worried! I just… I…" But she stopped when Mirajane gave her a knowing smile. It was no use making up reasons to her sister. Mirajane knew her all too well. She sighed, took a last look and saw them glaring at each other. A smile etched itself to her lips when she saw this, and she unknowingly rejoiced.

**Meanwhile… at Lucy's side**

"I won, now you're my slave pinky!" Lucy rubbed her victory in his face and folded her arms over her chest. She was very happy, and nothing else could make her any happier. Not even when a person who looked exactly like the pink haired bastard approached her from behind Natsu. Not even when she noticed the goggles on the look-alike's forehead. Not even when she recognized that wide goofy-grin she knows all too well.

"Lucy?" She heard him mutter her name and at that instant, Natsu decided to turn around.

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><p><strong>Raven: Oh yeah~ since I was so happy that FMN reached over 130 reviews, I ended up finishing it this early (I usually update on Friday's and today's Tuesday!). WEE! (Twirling around with my rolling chair). <strong>

**So, I know that I did bad in this chapter, and it's boring but I hope you leave a review and tell me what you think! And if some of you comment that Lucy's too strong for your liking, i shall repeat myself and say that I need her to be strong... besides, it's my story... I'm sorry if I talk like a bitch, but I'm getting tired of people PM'ing me and complaining. Someone actually did that, and they used bad words on me!**

**Also, there might be a lot of spelling errors and weird words like cou... that might mean count... it's cause my keyboard's destroyed and I have to either press hard or adjust it so that it could work. Please forgive me, I'm gonna go buy a new one as soon as get the money. promise. **

**BTW: who do you think was that Natsu look alike? And what will happen next? **

**If you have an idea, please tell me so I can put it in. I'll even dedicate that chapter to you! Teehee… I'm getting ahead of myself… anyway, thanks for the read! **


	8. 07: The Otherworldly Double

**Raven: Hi~ I'm sorry if this came very late, but I experienced the usual writer's block these past few days… It's because this week's the anniversary of my deceased favorite cousin and I can't seem to get in the mood to write. So forgive me. I promise to make it up to you guys in the next chapter though!**

**Oh! And this chapter's dedicated to Chrys stone. I promised you some Fluff, and here's my shot at it! Hope you liked it!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail**

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><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

"I won, now you're my slave pinky!" Lucy rubbed her victory in his face and folded her arms over her chest. She was very happy, and nothing else could make her any happier. Not even when a person who looked exactly like the pink haired bastard approached her from behind Natsu. Not even when she noticed the goggles on the look-alike's forehead. Not even when she recognized that wide goofy-grin she knows all too well.

"Lucy?" she heard him mutter her name and at that instant, Natsu decided to turn around. Lucy instantly appeared in front of the person who called her, and covered his view of him/her. She also had her arms raised in a weird manner which he thought was unlike her.

"Who's Lucy?" Natsu asked but then, something in his inner mind and heart told him it was someone he knew, a special person who he cared a lot about, but who? And then… _"My name's Lucy." The busty blond girl smiles at him as they ate. _

"So that's her name! But wait… why did that person call Gajeel's cousin Lucy? Hey-" He looked in front of him, but nobody stood there.

"Where the hell did they go off to?" He wondered. And then he had an idea. Since he already knew Gajeel's cousin's smell very well, he decided to just follow her.

_**Meanwhile… **_

Lucy dragged the person away from Natsu and led him/her towards the back of a building. She made sure no one followed them, and turned to look at him/her with a glare.

"What in the world of magic are you doing here?" She hissed, poking the person's chest with her finger.

"Ow… Lucy! It's been a while since we last saw each other and you greet me with a painful poke on the chest? How very like you!" The person underneath the cloak whined with a hint of playfulness over his/her voice. He/She then pulled down the hood and revealed a pink haired man, a carbon-copy of Natsu Dragneel. It was Natsu Dragion.

"Again, let me ask you. What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be in Edolas?" She asked her finger still on his chest. She watched as a small blush appeared on his cheeks and took over his entire face slowly.

"I-I uh… I came to see your world… s'all." He stuttered, looking at anything but Lucy. She quirked an eyebrow and leaned closer, watching as small beads of sweat began forming on the male's forehead.

"I don't believe you. I know when you're lying. You don't look people in the eye, and you start sweating bullets. Now tell me, why are you really here?" She asked firmly. Edo-Natsu caught himself smiling despite the fact that he was nervous to the core. Lucy knew him too well. It was thrilling and at the same time terrifying.

"Fine. I followed you. Happy?" He asked, daring a peek at her expression. Lucy stood there watching him like he was some rare specimen. He waited anxiously for her reaction.

"Awww come on! Why can't you tell me? Eh, anyway… you're already here so there's no use for me questioning why… but I wanna know how you managed to get here. Did Mystogan help you?" She wondered, pinching her chin thoughtfully.

Edo-Natsu gaped at her. She didn't believe him when he told her that he followed her. He just told her the truth, and yet she didn't believe him. What the hell?

"Wait a minute… I just realized something… How did you recognize me? I look different! I talk different!" She gasped, staring at him. Edo-Natsu gaped at her, wondering how she thought that he couldn't recognize her.

"Lucy… You're wearing the necklace I gave you on your 18th birthday. It's hidden, but I saw it." He admitted, another blush creeping its way towards his cheeks.

"O-oh? Really…" She muttered, pulling out the chain that was wrapped around her neck. She still remembered her first birthday with Edolas. It was now a distant but happy memory, one she would hold onto forever…

* * *

><p><em>It was 3 months into their training, and a day before her birthday. Nobody knew of course, since she never told anyone. Until she learned that it was also going to be Edo-Natsu's birthday. He never did know his parents, since he grew up with a foster father. But his foster father declared his birthday as the first time they met: July 1.<em>

_Since the news of Edo-Natsu's upcoming birthday, everyone got excited and decided to hold a party in the cave. Mirajane was in charge of the preparations, but Edo-Lucy was giving out the commands. It was a busy day for everyone, and Edo-Natsu was kicked out off the cave. Mirajane thought that he was lonely, so she also kicked Lucy out so that Edo-Natsu would have a companion. _

_She grumbled as she searched for the pink haired man. It was unfair if you asked her. Edo-Lucy should've been the one they sent, not her. And besides, she wondered if she'd tell them that it was her birthday too. _

_And then, while she walked, she stumbled and fell on top of something. Using both hands, she pushed herself up and blinked several times before a full out crimson red blush shot towards her face. It was Edo-Natsu and he had the same look of surprise on his face. _

"_Eeeeep!" Lucy shrieked, sitting up and covering her mouth. Edo-Natsu was silent as he sat up, leaning on his elbows for support. They were both in a compromising position, and Edo-Natsu was surprised when he found out that he liked it that way. Lucy was still too flustered to notice their position. _

"_L-Lucy!" He asked, sitting up completely. This time, it seemed as though Lucy was straddling him and that made him blush even more. He watched as Lucy instantly covered her face when he looked at her. _

"_I-I'm sorry. I wasn't looking where I was going." She apologized, her voice still muffled from her hands covering her face. He couldn't help but smile at her cuteness, and he mustered some courage to take her hands in his and look at her. Lucy's face was beet red and she breathed heavily. He smiled at her, and placed a hand on her head. Lucy watched him cautiously and she felt her heart beat even faster. _

"_And I wasn't supposed to be sleeping on the path leading to the forest. Sorry." He answered. They stayed in that position for a few minutes just looking at each other… until._

"_Aren't you supposed to get off me now?" Edo-Natsu asked, chuckling when Lucy's face turned a few shades darker. She squeaked and rushed up standing. _

"_I-I…" She couldn't finish __**trying **__to explain herself when he placed a finger on her lips. _

"_Nah… I liked it that way anyway…so, why are you here?" He asked, standing up and dusting his slacks. He didn't see the shocked expression on Lucy's face, but she was grateful for that. When he glanced up, he saw her smiling. He raised both eyebrows at her, but she just shrugged._

"_Uhmmm… I got kicked out…" She answered, dusting her skirt and shirt. She then heard chuckling and saw that Edo-Natsu was laughing at her. _

"_What." _

"_Nothing… hehe" Lucy glared at him._

"_I'll have you know that I got kicked out because of you. So don't go laughing at me when it's your fault." She jeered. He took a step back, almost startled by the venom that laced her voice and watched her. He then came up with a great idea and took a step forward. Lucy caught the different glint in his eyes and watched him cautiously. _

"_Then let me compensate… hmn, Lucy?" He offered, earning a slightly baffled and blushing Lucy. He chuckled again and took another step forward. Now she avoided him and went behind the tree trunk. _

"_W-what are you doing?" She asked, afraid of the look he was giving her. It was weird of him to look at her like that, it was scary yet somehow she found it cute. _

"_Oh~ nothing… now let me ask you, why are you hiding from me?" He said, advancing on her. Lucy hid behind the tree and was praying that he wasn't going to do what she thinks he's gonna do. Edo-Natsu grinned and decided to surprise her. He jumped up and grabbed a branch, and then sat on it. He saw that Lucy didn't notice him and was even praying silently which made him laugh. Next thing he did was wrap his legs tightly around the branch and swung down startling Lucy. _

"_Eeeep!" She squealed slapping him on the face. _

"_Owww! What'd you do that for?" HE groaned, cupping his violated cheek. He was sure it was going to leave a mark and he was going to get her back for that. _

"_You startled me! How'd you get there anyway?" She asked, glancing up at him. _

"_I climbed, duh…" He answered sarcastically. Lucy scowled and muttered some atrocious words, but was surprised when a pair of strong arms and hands wrapped itself around her shoulders and pulled her up. She then found herself sitting on the branch Edo-Natsu hung from. _

"_How'd you do that?" _

"_Something I learned while hunting… anyway, it's payback time.'' He answered casually. Lucy sweat dropped and tried to scoot backwards but the branch was rough and if she did that, she was sure she'd have some gashes on her thigh. She looked at him nervously and saw him pushing himself forward and then in a flash of pink she found herself laughing out loud. _

"_N-Natsu! AaaH~~ hihihi! S-stop ahahaha! Oh My Gahahaha! Stop it I sayhehehe!" His hands expertly found her tickle spots and she writhed and kicked at him. She tried pushing him away but he was now on top of her and his right hand was holding both of her hands underneath the branch. His other hand danced around her skin and sent her screaming. _

"_Want me to stop?" He asked, pausing for a moment. Lucy was still in a fit of giggles and nodded. He thought for a moment and shook his head. "Naw! I'm having fun!" He exclaimed seizing her stomach once more. _

"_Noohohohoho! I s-said stop it ahaha! I'm dyiiiiiiing!" She yelled, kicking her legs up to try and escape. She managed to push him of her with her knees, but then they both fell on the ground because of that. _

"_Oof!" They landed on the softer side by the tree. The ground was covered with thick moss and Bermuda grass so they weren't hurt that much. When they came to their bearings, they found themselves laughing. After that, a comfortable silence filled the air around them, until Edo-Natsu remembered something._

"_Oh right! I forgot to ask, when's your birthday?" He looked at her. Lucy glanced at him and smiled. _

"_We're twins…" She answered, earning a huge grin from the pink haired boy. _

"_You're having your birthday on the same day as mine? Awesome! I gotta go tell Mira!" He exclaimed jumping onto his feet. Lucy giggled at his cuteness and stood up._

"_I suppose it's time we go back to the cave as well… it's been hours." She said. Suddenly, her left wrist was pulled and she found herself being dragged by Edo-Natsu. _

"_H-hey! I can walk you idiot! Let me down!" She yelled, trying to get herself free but failing. _

"_You're slow. Besides, this is a matter of life and death!" He yelled back, careening through some trees and jumping over bushes with her still in tow. Lucy's brows met as she had on confused eyes. _

"_Life and Death! Are you freaking kiddin' me? How is it a matter of life and death!" _

"_If I don't tell Mira that it's your birthday tomorrow she'd kill me, in the most gruesome way possible." He answered, leaping under a huge branch pulling Lucy just in time before her face smashed into it. _

"_Mira would never do something like that!" Lucy exclaimed horrendously. Edo-Natsu smirked._

"_If not Mira, then Edo-Lucy or anyone else in the guild… they've taken a huge liking to you… so much that they're willing to get rid of me just to make you happy." He grinned, stopping right in front of the cave's entrance. _

"_Not really…" She murmured, dusting her shirt and skirt. When she looked up, she ended up laughing along with the pink haired bastard. Right there, blocking the entrance, was a huge boulder with a sign that said: PINK HAIRED PEOPLE AREN'T ALLOWED IN HERE UNLESS THEY WANT THEIR CHANCES OF HAVING CHILDREN TAKEN AWAY FROM THEM. IF YOU AREN'T AFRAID, THEN GO AHEAD AND MOVE THE BOULDER. _

"_I'm guessing that, that's Edo-Lucy's doing…" He chuckled, not even bothered. He glanced at Lucy and saw her smiling broadly. It was always like that. They always managed to make her smile and laugh without even trying. _

"_Come on!" He tugged her wrist. _

"_Aren't you-" "Nope!" Edo-Natsu interrupted her. She shook her head, but helped him push the boulder away from the mouth of the cave and entered with him anyway. When they got there, someone tackled the both of them to the ground, instantly covering her eyes with cloths. _

"_What the-" He asked, surprised. Lucy then heard muffled screams and scuffling before silence filled the area again. _

"_Hey! What's the big deal? Why me too?" Lucy exclaimed, trying to tug off the cloth covering her eyes. _

"_Because I said so, now shut up and be a good girl while I tie you up…" She heard an all too familiar voice mutter. It was her very own voice. Which meant it was Edo-Lucy binding her arms. _

"_Hey! Hey!" Lucy yelled when she felt herself being carried by someone. She tried kicking herself free, but then she was dropped off. _

"_Owww!" She groaned when she landed on the hard stone floor of the cave. She felt someone land beside her and guessed that it was Edo-Natsu. _

"_Isn't this too much of a precaution? And why did you throw me in here too!" Lucy screamed. She was answered with a large thud, indicating that something big was dropped in front of them._ _They were probably inside one of those small dead-ends and the loud thud she heard was from someone dropping a boulder in front of the entrance/exit so they couldn't leave. _

"_Argh! What in the world are they thinking?" She mused, trying to loosen the rope around her hands. _

"_Oi, Natsu." Lucy called out to him. _

"_Mmphfs?" She heard a muffled answer, probably meaning yes. Shaking her head, she continued what she was doing and ended up minutes later. Taking off her blind fold, she found out that they were indeed inside one of the small dead-ends of the cave and that it was pitch black inside. _

_Searching around with her hands as her eyes, she touched something warm with her left hand. Reaching out with her other one, she felt some warm air brush against her hand. _

"_Natsu… that you?" She wondered, cupping what she guessed were his cheeks. She felt him nod, and so she reached out behind him and found the small knot that rendered him blind. Fumbling with it for a while she was able to untie it. Since it was so dark in here, she couldn't see his face… which was actually just a few centimeters away from her. _

_Edo-Natsu could finally see… and what he saw wasn't anything different from the blind-fold moments before. He could feel Lucy in front of him, and her hands that were now trying to get rid of the cloth that enabled him speechless. He could actually feel her warm breath on his neck, and he was actually thankful for the darkness. Minutes later, he was free to talk. _

"_Ah~ Thanks…" He muttered, not realizing that his breath fell right onto Lucy's cheeks. The blond was startled and she leaned back for a moment grasping what just happened. _

"_Uhmmm… y-you're welcome. I think you can get rid of your binds alone…." She mumbled, slightly embarrassed. Besides, she couldn't see it anyway and it was easier just to make it loose and then slip your hands out. _

"_Yeah." Edo-Natsu answered, already on it. When they were both finally free of everything, they sat side by side in silence._

"_So, what's your favorite color?" Edo-Natsu asked out of the blue. Lucy stared at what she believed was his face for a moment and then smiled. He was probably thinking of a gift to get her. It was so~ Edo-Natsu. _

"_Blue. What about you? I'm guessing maybe pink?" She teased, earning a smack on the shoulder. Lucy giggled but wondered how he knew where her shoulder was. Edo-Natsu really didn't know what he just hit, but it seemed like her arm or shoulder. _

"_I do NOT have pink as my favorite color. I prefer the color red." He answered. Lucy nodded wearing a small smile. Pink was just the lighter shade of red, but of course, she wouldn't tell him that. He might smack her again. _

"_So, what do you want the most?" He asked as casually as he can. He frowned though after saying it. How can that question be casual when he just asked her what her favorite color was and then asked her what she wanted the most next? The blond smirked, confirming her earlier thoughts. Edo-Natsu was really asking her things so he could know what to get her for her birthday. She didn't want to disappoint him with her next answer, but it was the truth. _

"_Nothing... I'm already content with my life and nothing else can make me any happier. If you're wondering what to get me for tomorrow's event, don't bother." She answered honestly. Besides, she knew anything he'd give her would make her happy. They were kind of best friend's now, but they only knew the important things not the shallow things. _

"_Really… but I really want to get you something since I know you've already figured out a gift for me." He confessed, fumbling with his shirt. _

"_Oh? So do you know what I got you?" She asked, curious. He shook his head, forgetting that they were in a dark room and then realizing that they couldn't see each other he said no. _

"_But I really want to give you a gift, Lucy. So could you at least tell me something that you like? or clues on things that make you happy?" He continued. Lucy thought for a moment, placing a thoughtful finger on her chin. _

"_Hmmm… let's see… I like cute outfits, books, cute accessories… I'd like to gather more keys. That would make me very happy but it would be impossible now. I also want to get stronger, to protect my friends and myself. I really don't mind getting anything from you guys, as long as I know you put an effort to give me one." _

_Natsu stayed silent, thinking about all the things she said. And then an idea came to mind. Once, while they were on their trip to the town, he walked past a jewelry shop that had many beautiful trinkets. He's sure he could find something that would suit Lucy perfectly. With this in mind, he was determined to get out of the room so he could tell them it was her birthday too and so that he could go and get her, her gift. _

"_Hey Lucy…"_

"_Yeah?"_

"_Help me push the boulder away."_

"_Sure." So after a few minutes of searching for the boulder, they came across it and pushed with all their might. _

_And so, an hour later, they were finally able to push it away with just enough space for them to slip out. While walking, they ran into some of the guild member's and Edo-Natsu took the liberty of telling them that it was her birthday tomorrow as well. Upon hearing this news, they immediately ran off to tell Mira. When that was cleared, he disappeared from Lucy's sight. She knew he was going to go search for a gift to give her, and it felt wonderful to know that he was that determined to find her one. _

_While walking towards the lounge area of the cave, she met her Edolas counterpart and one minute she was smiling at her, the next she was kicked out. Again. Sighing in defeat, she walked around and decided to train a bit. _

_5 hours of training later, she was poofed and had little to no energy left. Falling back onto the soft grass, she decided to take a small nap. Lucy was dreaming the sweetest dream ever when she felt something crawling up her legs. She was surprised and kicked it off frantically, but it kept coming back. Peeking with her left eye, she frowned when she saw Edo-Natsu grinning at her with a leaf in his hand. She glared at him and sat up. _

"_I was bored and it so happened I passed by your sleeping form. I thought I'd kill time by irritating you." He said looking at her with warm eyes. She rolled her chocolate ones and looked up at the sky. The stars were beginning to show themselves and due west, the sun was already setting. It was twilight. _

"_This late already? We should get back to the guild" She muttered, standing up. Edo-Natsu followed suit and walked side by side with her in silence. When they got to the cave, the boulder was no longer there and everything seemed eerily quiet. _

"_Hmm… strange." They wondered, walking inside. The torches weren't lit and they couldn't see clearly with the little light that came from outside. Silence greeted them. It was as if nothing lived here. What happened?_

_As they ventured deeper into the cave, they were already enveloped in nothing but darkness. Lucy guessed that they must have done that on purpose so they couldn't see what the cave looked like at the moment. While she squinted to try to get a better view, she didn't catch the shadow that passed her by. Edo-Natsu was doing the same so he also didn't notice the other shadow that hid behind the darkness. _

_Suddenly, they were blinded by a flash of light and startled by shouts and cheers from everyone._

"_SURPRISE!" They shouted, throwing confetti and blowing horns with gleeful sparks in their eyes. Edo-Natsu and Lucy looked at each other and smiled. They knew that they were going to do that all along, but they didn't guess that it'd be done this early. _

"_Happy Birthday Natsu! Happy Birthday Lucy-Heart!" They continued, pulling the two birthday celebrants towards the center of the group. _

"_I heard that it was your birthday tomorrow too Lucy! Why didn't you tell me sooner!" Mirajane mused, placing a silver sash on her with the words: Birthday Girl written in a beautiful script in purple glitter. Edo-Natsu had on a sash as well, but it was silver with the words: Birthday Boy written in the same script in black glitter. _

_She was about to answer when a lot of people bombarded her with questions too. Some she answered, the others she couldn't understand, while some other questions were just plain weird._

"_Guys! Give her some space! Don't crowd her!" She heard Edo-Lucy's voice and instantly, they fell silent and left her alone. She found Edo-Natsu in his own circle, struggling as much as she did. It was a pity he didn't have back-up like she did. Oh well, not her problem. _

"_Thanks Edo-Lucy!" She grinned. Her counterpart blushed a bit, but nodded curtly before disappearing somewhere. Lucy shrugged and joined the now partying people in front of her. There was pop music playing on the speakers (where did they get it?) and they even got a professional DJ to take care of the songs so that everybody could enjoy._

_Hours of dancing, singing, and just plain partying flew by, and they were now seated on their tables listening to soft music as they waited for the food to be served by the hired waiters and waitresses. As usual, it was Mirajane who did all the cooking, with little help from the girls. It was as delicious as ever and people craved more of it. In no time at all, they ran out and Mira had to order some take out from the closest town. When the food was taken care of, it was time to open the gifts. _

_Lucy's and Edo-Natsu's gifts were stacked up in different tables with different colored table cloths. The decided that Natsu would open Lucy's while Lucy would open Natsu's. Some objected for some reason, but it was decided by the majority so they had no choice. _

_The first gift to be opened was from Gray to Edo-Natsu. It was an average sized box with dark blue wrapper and a silver ribbon on top. A card was attached to the ribbon and Lucy read it out loud. _

"_To Natsu Dragion, from Gray. Hope you like it, I got this custom made months ago." She smiled when she saw the appreciative grin Edo-Natsu wore. She took off the cover of the box and took out a red long sleeved shirt with a hood. It was made out of cotton and silk, and the sewing was tailored professionally. In front, it had on a hand sown abstract design that resembled the Edolas Fairy Tail guild and at the back was Edo-Natsu's name with a cool design of a car beside it. _

"_Thanks dude!" Edo-Natsu exclaimed, giving Gray a huge grin. After Lucy set it aside, it was Edo-Natsu's turn to open one of their gifts to her. He picked up a medium sized paper bag that was designed with violet stripes and a pink ribbon at the edge. _

"_To Lucy Heartfilia, from Levy. Wear it 'soon'" He read. Everyone wondered what it was, but since it came from Levy, they doubted it would be something Lucy would wear "soon". He opened it slowly and blushed crimson red when he looked inside. Everyone wanted to know what made him blush like that, but then Lucy grabbed it from him and took a look herself. She ended up having the same reaction as he did, and when she looked around to search for Levy, she found out that she was in the bathroom. _

"_Levy-chan…" She murmured dangerously, emitting a dark evil aura around herself. The guild members tensed up and took a smart step backwards to avoid the blond woman's wrath. _

"_Why? What's inside?" Someone asked. Everyone nodded. Lucy ended up blushing again and keeping the gift behind her back. Edo-Lucy smirked, reached down and grabbed the gift from her counterpart's hands. _

"_Noo!" Lucy screamed, trying to take the bag back but Edo-Lucy tossed it to the others. Lucy surrendered then and covered her face in embarrassment. One of the guys took Levy's gift out and ended up dropping it. Edo-Lucy strode over and picked it up revealing a very revealing set of lingerie. She ended up hooting and waving them around. _

"_Wear them soon Lucy~" She teased the other blond, who was crouching on the ground near the bar. The others laughed as well, urging Lucy to just forget about it and open the next gifts. This went on for a while, until everything was opened. _

_Most of the gifts they received were perfectly suited for them, others very embarrassing, but the rest just right. After that, it was time for games and Edo-Lucy demanded strip poker. That was the moment Lucy decided to escape outside to just have some fresh air and some peace and quiet. _

"_Ahhh~" She breathed out, looking up at the floating islands and the stars… She thanked the heavens for receiving such great friends and for the best birthday she's had for years. After a whole half hour of just standing there and doing nothing, she decided to wander around the clearing. _

"_I wonder what they're up to now…" She spoke to herself, admiring how the moon set an ethereal glow to the meadow._

"_As usual, Edo-Lucy's winning…" Someone answered her question from out of nowhere. She turned around with an "eep" and found Edo-Natsu in just his slacks. Lucy found herself blushing when she saw his well toned chest and abdomen._

"_Wh-where'd you suddenly come from?" She asked, looking away to hide her blush. _

"_I've been following you since you started walking around." He answered, stepping beside her. Lucy felt her heart beat fast and her face heat up. _

"_In nothing but your pants and shoes?" She heard him chuckle._

"_Haha… I guess so. Edo-Lucy's confiscated my shirt… you know how she plays." He grinned at her. Lucy just nodded and decided to continue walking. _

"_So… uhmmm… I didn't get the chance to give you your gift in there." He muttered, his voice barely a whisper. But Lucy heard it and liked the way he sounded at that moment. She turned to look at him and saw that he was holding a small dark blue box with a baby blue transparent ribbon around it. _

"_Thanks Natsu…" She smiled at him and took the box. As she opened it, she caught a slight glint from under and when the top was finally taken off, she gasped. There, at the center of a navy blue cloth sat the most precious necklace she's ever seen. _

"_This is for me! Really?" She exclaimed, glancing at her companion. He nodded a small smile in his lips. Because she was too excited, she didn't notice the blush on his cheeks. _

"_Thank you! Thanks so, so much!" She yelled, tackling him with a hug. Because of the sudden impact, both fell to the ground and ended up laughing. Sitting up, they were now facing each other. Lucy ignored how close she was to his half naked body and focused on the necklace he gave her. _

"_Could you help me wear it?" She asked, handing him his gift. He nodded and took it from her. Slowly, he leaned forward and wrapped the chain around her slender neck and clasped the chain together with a soft click. Looking down, Lucy saw how much his gift suited her and the beauty of the pendant. _

"_There." Edo-Natsu whispered, fixing her hair so that it wouldn't get tangled with the chain. He grinned when he saw that it was perfect for her and that she seemed to like it. _

_But it was an understatement. Lucy didn't like it, she LOVED it. The necklace was perfect for her. The chain was made of shining silver, holding the ever beautiful pendant. It was a key with a sapphire gem at the center of the key ring shaped like a clover. The shaft was adorned with small little blue jewels and its bit was elegantly cut like the key ring. It was hanging from the chain by a small ring made of silver and cut stone. _

"_Do you like it?" He couldn't help but ask. Lucy stared at him for a moment and then a beautiful smile adorned her lips._

"_I love it. Thank you, Natsu…" She said in a hushed and thankful tone, that he couldn't help but blush. Lucy on the other hand just remembered that she had his gift with her all along and forgot to give it to him as well…_

* * *

><p>"Yep! See, there's the bit of the key!" He answered, pointing at it. She looked down and saw that it was indeed peeking from the cut on her upper shirt.<p>

"Oh… well then okay… let's get going then." She said out of mind. And then, she suddenly recalled that he looked exactly like the pink haired idiot.

"Shoot! I forgot about that!" Lucy face palmed, thinking quickly for a way to hide his identity. She was sure they still remembered him from Edolas and how was he supposed to be unrecognizable? He looked like Natsu Dragneel for heaven's sake!

"Bout what?" He asked, interrupting her musings. She glared at him, and continued thinking. She could change his appearance… and then call him some other name. But that would be too hard in the short time they had. And besides, he doesn't have magic… does he?

"Edo-Natsu, can you do magic?" She asked him. He thought for a moment and grinned. A little while later, a small flame appeared in his hand.

"King Mystogan said that the magic of my Earthland counterpart is my magic too. So it means I'm a fire mage then." He answered, playing with the small fire he made. Lucy nodded, a little satisfied.

"So it means you have magic in you then. Well, we better get to work." She muttered, stepping towards him.

"Work?" He took a step back. Lucy grinned evilly and cornered him to the wall.

"Make-over time…" She whispered menacingly.

"Nooooo~" Edo-Natsu screeched in terror

**A little while later…**

"There. See, that wasn't so bad." She grinned at her masterpiece. Edo-Natsu was now looking like a model who just stepped out of the front page of the Sorcerer Weekly magazine.

"Easy for you to say…" He grumbled, tugging at his now red colored hair. Lucy took out Cancer and made the spirit "edit" his appearance. Now his pink hair was flaming red and his bangs were swept down to cover his eyes (much like Gray's bangs), his hair also got longer and hung instead of standing in a spiky way. His eyes also changed by some miracle, now sporting two pairs of green orbs. He got taller too, plus his old clothes were taken from him and replaced with Lucy's idea of "hot".

"Quit grumbling and thank me for a second. Look at you! You look awesome!" She squealed, showing him to a mirror she got from somewhere. He gawked at the dude in front of himself. The guy was wearing a high collared, long sleeved black coat (like Gray's white coat) with flaming red edges that reached his knee. Underneath, he wore an ordinary red shirt that complimented his toned body. He still wore his slacks though, but his shoes were different. Instead of his rubber shoes, he wore the same type of boots Lucy was wearing, only plainer.

"That isn't me." He muttered, staring at those dark green orbs. Lucy rolled her eyes, but giggled.

"Awww come on… you look great! Now all we have to do is think of your new name… Hmmm." She thought. Edo-Natsu on the other hand was too busy staring at "himself" but an idea came to him anyway.

"Kaizen Haven-Farrow…" He whispered. Lucy picked up on this and grinned.

"Cool… okay, we'll stick with that. You are officially Kaizen Haven-Farrow…" She patted his back. Edo-Natsu grinned at her and they both laughed. It seemed so ordinary, yet what they were doing was something far from that. They were changing themselves permanently, parting from their old selves, and yet they still laughed about it. Probably because they knew that they wouldn't regret the decision.

"So, what about we catch up? I mean, it's been three months. What's been happening back there?" Lucy asked, as they began walking out of the alley and into the busy streets of Magnolia. Edo-Natsu grinned.

"You wouldn't wanna know…" he answered but ended up telling her everything anyway. They were too caught up in their conversation that they didn't notice someone tailing them.

* * *

><p><strong>Raven: Okay, I decided to end it here since its getting wa~y too long. And guys, sorry if this chapter wasn't to your liking but I really had a depressing week so I hope you understand. Thanks for the read… <strong>


	9. 08: Cousin Complex

**Raven: Yo~ That was the longest time it took for me to update! Sorry… hehe and just to clear things up, I'm going back to school next week so I might end up not updating for a while… gomenasai! **

**Anyway, I present to you CHAPTER EIGHT! Which is just a filler since I'm still thinking up the next battle and twist to the story… have fun!**

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

* * *

><p>Lucy and Edo-Natsu were strolling along the streets of Magnolia, paying not much attention to their surroundings. Most of the people stared at them in awe. It wasn't everyday in Magnolia that you'd get to see beautiful people as them, not counting Erza and Mirajane of Fairy Tail. They were new faces in Magnolia and new people are always the source of gossip for them.<p>

"Who do you think they are?" The owner of an open café shop wondered aloud, watching the two approaching figures.

"Look at the girl's shoulder, she's from Fairy Tail" One of his customer's answered, curious as well.

"Oh? A new member?" Another person joined in on their conversation. People began huddling around the owner, discussing the two new faces in Magnolia.

"What about the guy? He's so hot!" A girl squealed. Many women and some men nodded their heads, observing the two who stopped right in front of the café.

"Look! Look! They're coming this way!" The same girl screeched. All of them panicked and rushed to their seats, eyes still on the two new comers. Lucy quirked an eyebrow when she saw how all of them reacted, but shrugged it off.

"Well, aren't you hungry?" She asked Edo-Natsu, pulling out one of the chairs under the table. Her companion did the same and they both began looking through the menu.

"Why didn't you just take me back to your guild? I'm curious to see them" He said, referring to the Earthland counterparts of his friends.

"Well curiosity killed the cat." Lucy answered coolly. Edo-Natsu chuckled and searched for something good to eat.

"Obviously, I'm not a cat." He said, finding something that he unexpectedly wanted to eat.

"No duh… that was just a saying." Lucy smirked, picking something to her liking. She raised her hand and called a waiter over. The bunch of people that were gawking at them watched in jealousy as the waiter headed over to the cool pair.

"I'll take your special and a beer." Lucy said, handing him the menu. She looked over to Edo-Natsu and raised her eyebrows.

"Fire chicken and fire whiskey please…" He ordered. Lucy choked on her spit and stared at him for a while.

"You serious?" She asked, very much surprised. Edo-Natsu nodded, wondering why she was surprised.

"Yeah, why?"

"You can't eat fire food… that's just plain crazy." She still stared at him.

"Well my stomach says otherwise."

"Maybe it's cause of your magic…" Lucy wondered. Edo-Natsu thought too and they both came to that conclusion.

"Well then, that's all. Thanks." Lucy told the waiter and smiled at him. The man blushed, walking towards the building. When inside, the bunch of curious people pulled him aside and raided him with questions.

"Well? How were they?"

"A pair of nice people," He grinned, remembering the girl's smile.

"What did they order?"

"Fire chicken and fire whiskey for the male. The special and beer for the lady," He answered.

"So the guy's a fire mage like the Dragneel kid?"

"I guess so…"

"Well then go tell the chef" The owner said, pushing the guy slightly.

"Yes boss." He saluted, chuckling at the people's curiosity.

* * *

><p><strong>Meanwhile, at Lucy's side…<strong>

* * *

><p>"Where are you staying now?" Lucy asked Edo-Natsu. They were waiting for their order and so they decided to continue where they left off.<p>

"I don't know actually. I just got here yesterday and it just so happened that I came across your guild and saw you…" He answered, suddenly realizing this fact himself.

"Well, I'm also looking for a place to stay. Wanna search with me later on?" She offered. Edo-Natsu grinned and nodded.

"Sure. Well, how's being back home?" He asked, curious to know why she changed everything about her.

"Fine. I'm actually glad they forgot about me. It would be a pain to explain everything…" Lucy chuckled, even though she actually felt sad inside.

"Wait, they forgot about you?" He asked, shocked.

"Wasn't it obvious? Natsu even asked you who Lucy was." She answered, noticing someone watching them from behind the bushes in front of the open café.

"Oh… riiight… But how? Didn't you say all of you were like family?"

"Yeah~ But I guess even family forget about each other sometimes. Anyway, just ignore that fact… I've moved on and this is for the best… I think." She waved her hand to his face. Edo-Natsu watched her, searching for any sign that she wasn't fine. But she didn't have any, or rather, she hid any she had.

"Fine… but why did you decide to join them again? Wouldn't that just hurt you more?"

"I thought that too. But someone actually remembered me and he convinced me to go back. He also told me that some other people still know who I am."

"Who?"

"Gajeel. He's my-" Lucy suddenly stood up and peered at the bushes. "Wait a moment please…" She raised a finger and strode over to the bushes. Edo-Natsu and the others watched as she pulled out a tuft of pink hair revealing the Dragneel kid.

"Pinky- what're you doing stalking me?" She exclaimed, placing her hands on her hips. Natsu glared at her, rubbing his head.

"Ow! Why'd ya have to pull my hair that hard? I might end up bald because of you!" He exclaimed. Lucy smirked.

"It'll suit you, I'm sure. Well? Aren't you gonna answer my question?" She asked, tapping her foot impatiently on the ground.

"Who's that guy?" Natsu questioned, pointing to Edo-Natsu who was watching them. Lucy raised her eyebrows.

"Why do you care? You're just my slave; you have no right to ask questions to your master." She said calmly, earning a deadly glare from the pink haired idiot.

"Anyway, answer my question."

"What question?" Natsu asked. Lucy's eyes twitched in irritation. _How stupid can he get? _She thought.

"Why were you stalking me?" His eyes widened and then he looked at the ground.

"I wanna know why that guy called you Lucy when you're not Lucy." He answered, earning a wide-eyed Lucy. _He knows who Lucy is? What the hell? _

"Name's Kourin idiot… he mistook me for someone." She answered as calmly as she could. Natsu's head snapped to the direction of Edo-Natsu.

"Wait. He knows the blond haired girl named Lucy?" He exclaimed, eyes intent on the red haired guy watching them.

"I dunno…" She shrugged; praying to the Lord's of the heaven's that Natsu would be too stupid to figure out who she was right when she was getting settled. And then suddenly, Natsu rushed towards Edo-Natsu.

"You know who Lucy is?" He exclaimed, both hands on the table. Lucy sighed and jogged to their table. Edo-Natsu glanced at Lucy and saw her shake her head. He looked back to Natsu and raised his eyebrows.

The people who were watching them were now huddled together again, curious to know why the Dragneel kid suddenly "attacked" the handsome red haired boy.

"Who's Lucy?" Edo-Natsu asked, earning a glare from Natsu.

"Don't lie. I heard you call Gajeel's cousin Lucy." Natsu persisted, leaning closer to his Edolas counterpart.

"Well I mistook her for Lucinda okay! Why? You friend's with Lucinda or something?" Edo-Natsu acted. Lucy gave him two thumbs up but returned to her emotionless mask when Natsu glanced at her.

"L-Lucinda? You mean…"

"Lucy's the nickname I gave her. She's a friend from Pergrande Kingdom…" Edo-Natsu lied further. Lucy told her all about her back story and they even came up with his own.

"Oh…" Natsu frowned, scratching his hair in disappointment. Lucy grinned at Edo-Natsu and took her seat.

"If you're done disturbing our dinner, you can leave now slave…" Lucy narrowed her eyes at him. Natsu looked at her and then to Edo-Natsu. He sighed and nodded, taking a step forward. But then, he smelled something that sent his stomach grumbling. It was the smell of his favorite food… Lucy caught on this and frowned.

Just at that moment, the waiter came with a two separate trays holding their orders. Lucy groaned, seeing the drooling face of Natsu.

"Leave." She said, her voice laced with venom. Natsu stared at the fire chicken and then at Lucy who was glaring at him. He was contemplating on grabbing the food and being beat by Gajeel's cousin, or leaving and ordering food at the guild. He knew that the last option was better, but he just couldn't take his eyes off of the fire chicken right in front of him. Lucy eyed him, waiting for his next move while Edo-Natsu thanked the waiter and placed their food on the table.

"Mmmm~ smells good…" He moaned in delight as he took in the wonderful scent of the food in front of him. But he couldn't eat yet. Not when Natsu was staring at his food like a poor street kid.

"Leave now pinky, or else…" Lucy warned him. Natsu gulped hard and frowned.

"Fine." He growled, but before he left, he grabbed a chicken leg and ran off.

"Idiot!" Lucy yelled after him. Edo-Natsu ended up laughing at his counterpart's antics. Really. They were so different in so many ways.

"Argh! He's so irritating… I wonder why I even made him my slave…" Lucy wondered, reaching for her beer. "Oh right, he's the one who offered."

"I can see why you liked him…" Edo-Natsu smiled at her. Lucy's eyes bulged out of their sockets and she almost choked on her drink.

"I don't like him! Where did that come from all of a sudden?" She glared at him, wiping the sides of her mouth rashly.

"I said liked. Emphasis on the –ed" He chuckled, finding this side of Lucy cute. The denying frustrated kind.

"I never liked him. He's an idiot. He doesn't know a thing about love. He-He's-" Lucy tried coming up with other negative things about Natsu but nothing else came. Edo-Natsu wore a satisfied smirk, but he was actually a little bit sad inside. _Too bad I'm just the opposite of him… _

"I know… so just forget about it and eat." He told her, taking a bite out of his fire chicken. Lucy glared at him while drinking her beer but then let it go and began eating her food.

"So, who's Gajeel?" Edo-Natsu asked again. Lucy sipped some of the soup from her order and let out a contented sigh.

"He's the person I told you about, the one who challenged me to a fight. Now he's acting as my cousin, cool right?" She grinned, grabbing the bowl filled with rice and shoving some in her mouth. It was obvious that her eating habits changed, maybe because of the influence of her Edolas counterpart.

"Ahhh… the metal-faced idiot who was stupid enough to challenge you when you were in a bad mood?" He asked, referring to what she called Gajeel when she told him her story. Lucy nodded and began wolfing down all of the remaining food. Edo-Natsu's eyes twitched in somewhat surprise and a little irritation since some of the food went flying towards him.

"Seriously? Couldn't you eat a little less wildly? I mean, you're a girl!" He scolded her. He sighed when another piece of meat hit him on the forehead. Edo-Natsu decided to just give up and concentrate on his own food, glancing at Lucy from time to time. He chuckled when he saw the satisfied glint in her eyes as she slumped down her seat and leaned back onto her chair.

"You ate like a pig." He informed her, finishing off his fire whiskey. He never knew fire food tasted that delicious and he probably never would have if he didn't take up the magic of his counterpart.

"At least I don't look like one." Lucy countered, burping out loud. They looked at each other for a moment before laughing with each other and sighing in ease. It was just like before, when Lucy was still at Edolas. Now it was the other way around, he was the one in her world… the only difference was that he wanted to be here.

"So, are you gonna take me to your guild now?" Edo-Natsu asked, really wanting to see Earthland Fairy Tail with his own eyes. Lucy's already told stories all about them but he wanted to see them with his own two eyes.

"Nope. I need to find a place to stay, remember?" She pointed out, raising her hand. The same waiter who took their order and served them appeared moments later with the bill in his hand. Lucy glanced at the receipt and unzipped a small hidden pouch on her shorts, pulling out 2,000 jewels.

"Here…" She smiled at the waiter and then stood up, motioning for Edo-Natsu to follow her. They were almost out of the café when the waiter called them.

"Miss! Your change!" He said, handing out a wad of cash. Lucy glanced at the money and then at the waiter before smirking and shaking her head.

"Tip." She merely stated before pulling Edo-Natsu's hand and stalking out of the place. The waiter stood there, staring at the 1,234 worth of jewels she left as a tip. Grinning, he yelled out a thanks and bowed before going back inside.

"That was generous of you…" Edo-Natsu commented as they searched for a place where she could stay. Looking at the time now, it was already 7:56 so she probably won't find an apartment but rent a room at an inn instead.

"I feel like being a good girl today." Lucy answered, realizing the same thing as Edo-Natsu.

"Hey. I guess I need to go back to the guild after all. I'll just ask Gajeel if I can bunk with him for tonight. You can some too." She offered, changing directions. Now they were walking on the way they came from earlier.

"Really? And is _Gajeel _gonna want a stranger like me stay in his house?" He asked, a little bit uncomfortable with the thought. Besides, from her description of him, the guy didn't seem like a hospitable kind of person.

"Of course he will, I'm gonna ask him for you. If he dare say no, he'd be the one searching for a place to stay for tonight. I'll just tell him that you're my best friend from Pergrande and that you want to join Fairy Tail too." She assured him. Edo-Natsu pitied Gajeel somehow. He knew that once Lucy made up her mind, it'd take arms and limbs to refuse her decision. Nodding in agreement, they proceeded to Fairy Tail in silence.

He noticed that Earthland wasn't that different from Edolas after all. All that's missing were the floating islands and the weird buildings and animals. The people seemed the same and so did the atmosphere. It just felt a little different since the place was filled with infinite magic and he too felt himself a lot more powerful now that he acquired his counterpart's abilities.

Half an hour later, they reached a large building with wide wooden doors and the words FAIRY TAIL formed across the top of the entrance. Edo-Natsu beamed at it since it looked almost like his own guild, the resemblance was utterly shocking. Lucy noticed his ecstatic expression and smirked.

"Come on _Kaizen, _we gotta hurry. I'm not even sure if Gajeel's still here." She grinned, using his pseudo name for the first time. Edo-Natsu grinned as well and followed her inside. Surprisingly, the guild was still full and noisy as ever.

They went silent though when Lucy entered with a new guy who looked like he just stepped out of the Sorcerer Weekly Front page. Cana whistled lowly, Laki readjusted her glasses, Erza (who was sitting in a table beside Jellal) raised her eyebrows in approval, and the other females just openly stared.

He got a little uncomfortable at the attention so he stuck closer to Lucy who chuckled at his child-like behavior. She looked around and saw Gajeel talking animatedly with Levy.

"Yo! Gajeel! Gotta talk to you for a sec" Lucy called the iron dragonslayer. Said man turned around and smirked when he saw bunny-girl but then frowned when he caught the guy standing ever so closely to his _cousin. _Stalking forward to meet them, he eyed the man behind her. He was a good head taller than Lucy with blazing red hair, cool green eyes, and a serious face.

Right at that moment, Mirajane got out of the kitchen and saw the guy who was with Lucy. Her jaw dropped and she instantly squealed in delight. Everyone gave her a confused look whilst she ignored them all.

"Kourin-san! You didn't tell us you had a boy friend!" She exclaimed catching all of them, including Lucy and Edo-Natsu, off guard. Cana frowned, disappointed that he already got himself a woman, Laki readjusted her glasses, while Erza remained unfazed (she already deduced their relationship when she saw how close he was to her) and the other women gave up entirely.

"B-boyfriend!" Lucy whispered out loud, a little bit flustered and shocked. Edo-Natsu was blushing madly, but hid it discretely with the collar of his coat and stepped a little closer to Lucy. Gajeel raised an eyebrow while he eyed the guy thought to be his _cousin's _boy friend.

"C-clear it up already Lucy…" Edo-Natsu whispered to her ear. Everyone caught the gesture and thought that he was whispering something soothing to calm his girlfriend.

"I-I know… h-hey! We… we're n-" She was about to do just that when Gajeel suddenly appeared right in front of them and clutched Edo-Natsu's collar. The whole guild fell silent, feeling the demonic aura the iron dragonslayer was emitting.

"You the boyfriend of Kourin?" He hissed, leaning closer towards Edo-Natsu's unfazed gaze. Outside, he was calm and collected but inside, he was just the exact opposite. Gulping and mustering all the courage he could get, he clasped Gajeel's fists and glared at him.

"Let go of me, metal faced freak." Edo-Natsu jeered, pushing Gajeel away from himself and smoothening (A/N: smoothening or smoothing? That is the question) his crumpled coat. Everyone in the guild remained silent, pitying the poor guy who dared talk back to Gajeel. Gajeel smirked, a little pleased that the boy had some guts to talk back to him.

"Kourin, he your boyfriend?" Gajeel began, facing Lucy. She was about to retaliate when her supposed cousin continued. "I like him." Gajeel grinned, which resembled a beast baring its fangs. The guild was shocked. Gajeel wasn't one for _liking _people, nor was he the sort of person to say it out loud. But maybe it was fine, since this was his cousin's boyfriend they were talking about.

"Y-you do?" Lucy couldn't help but blurt out. Edo-Natsu blushed harder, but continued to maintain his serious mask. Mirajane squealed, Erza nodded approvingly again, Laki readjusted her glasses with a smile, while all the other girls were pleased even though they were disappointed that the new guy was already taken (most especially Cana).

"Sure. The guys got balls. So, mind telling me who he is?" Gajeel asked, a little gentler at speaking when with Lucy. He wondered who the guy was. She never told him anything about a friend and more importantly, a boyfriend.

"He's Kaizen." Lucy answered nonchalantly, deciding to just ignore their accusations of her and Edo-Natsu being together. "And we gotta talk outside." She continued, pulling Gajeel and Edo-Natsu's wrists towards the guild doors.

"What about?" The iron dragonslayer asked, curious. The guild began whispering, thinking that maybe Kourin-san was pregnant and that the red haired guy named Kaizen was gonna take responsibility and since Gajeel was her cousin he needed to approve of their relationship. But then Gajeel would disapprove so Kourin-san would have to take care of the baby on her own and she'd end up hating Gajeel to the ends of the worlds.

But then again, the Kaizen guy might love Kourin-san so much that he would challenge Gajeel in a fight and end up dying so Kourin-san would die from depression and the baby would never have been born. And then Gajeel will blame himself for the death of his beloved cousin and commit suicide so Levy-chan would be depressed as well and kill herself too.

Yep. Fairy Tail was too crazy for their own good.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Outside…<strong>_

* * *

><p>Lucy faced the two men and folded her arms over her chest.<p>

"Gajeel, I need a favor." She said, turning her gaze to the iron dragonslayer who was looking intently at the flame haired guy named Kaizen. He grunted in response, indicating for her to go on. Lucy let out a breath.

"I don't have a place to stay for the night. I was wondering if I could sleep over at your place for just tonight. Him too." Lucy said, nodding her chin towards Edo-Natsu who was silent all the while. Gajeel choked on his spit and stared wide-eyed at Lucy. Was she f-in serious? It would've been alright with him if it was just her, they were playing cousins after all… but for her to bring along that flame haired guy? The hell?

"Silence means yes. Thanks, _cousin…" _Lucy smiled at him evilly. Edo-Natsu sweat dropped, knowing that evil smile of hers. It was a sign that she knew that she was getting her way, no matter what.

"Wait. Wait. Wait. Wait! Let me get this straight. You want to stay over at my place with your boyfriend?" Gajeel cleared, already knowing that he was going to lose the argument anyway.

"Yep, just for tonight." Lucy agreed, not really bothering to clear that Edo-Natsu was just a friend. It was just a drag to explain it to everyone in the guild. She already knew that they'd think otherwise even when she told them no. Edo-Natsu on the other hand was silently blushing, but he also understood where Lucy was going with this. Besides, he liked the thought.

"I have only one room available." Gajeel tried to get her to change her mind, but when Lucy smirked, he knew that all was lost.

"Then sleep with Kaizen in your room. I'll take the extra.'' She smiled at him and then walked away, leaving Gajeel and Edo-Natsu alone outside the guild. When Lucy was gone, Gajeel faced Edo-Natsu and glared at him.

"Sorry for this inconvenience, but it'll just be for one night." Edo-Natsu apologized, bowing his head.

"I sure as hell hope so. What's your name again?" Gajeel asked, leaning forward and staring at him right in the eye.

"Kaizen Haven-Farrow… nice to meet you, cousin of Kourin." Edo-Natsu smiled, getting a little bit used to the terrifying demeanor of the man in front of him.

"Name's Gajeel Redfox… 'sit true that you're together?" Gajeel pushed, stepping backwards and leaning onto the wall of the guild.

"Yeah…" Edo-Natsu answered. He'd have to clarify that part to Lucy, but he was sure she'd agree anyway.

"For how long now?" The older mage continued with his questions. This time, however, Edo-Natsu didn't answer.

"Five months. If you want to know that badly, why don't you just ask me?" Lucy answered for him. Both males snapped their heads towards her a little surprised that they didn't notice her appearance.

"I figured you'd deny." Gajeel shrugged. Lucy shook her head and walked towards Edo-Natsu.

"Why would I do such a thing as deny my relationship with this handsome young man?" Lucy asked, feigning shock and hurt. Edo-Natsu shook his head in amusement while Gajeel actually smirked.

"Whatever. What happened in there?" He asked. Lucy sighed this time.

"They were terrifying. The girl's surrounded me like monkeys and treated me like I was the last banana on earth. They kept asking if I was pregnant or something… and they accused you of being a terrible cousin, while they kept insisting that Kaizen loved me and would fight for me to the death. I don't freaking know where they all got those stuff, but it was inhuman I tell you. Inhuman!" Lucy declared, revealing only this side of her to Gajeel and Edo-Natsu. The two males chuckled and shook their heads.

"Them people's got some screw loose I tell ya…" Gajeel grinned, a little amused at how crazy his _nakama _were. It's taken him a whole year to adjust and wouldn't deny that he truly treasured them all. He wasn't quite used to their silly antics yet though (even when he was the silly one at times).

"I suppose." Edo-Natsu nodded his head in agreement, wearing a funny smile that Lucy noted was somehow approving of Gajeel's statement.

"I see the both of you are in good terms?" Lucy smirked, raising an eyebrow and folded her arms across her chest. Gajeel and Edo-Natsu glanced at each other and at the same time snapped their heads towards a different direction indignantly. Lucy grinned and shook her head.

"Well then, it's getting late. Why don't we call it a night?" Lucy suggested as she leaned forward and took a step beside Edo-Natsu.

"Guess so. Let's get going then. I ain't gonna be slowing down, so I don't care if you get lost. You can just sleep in the streets for all I care."Gajeel sneered while he started to walk off in a random direction.

"Yeah, it's just like you to treat your cousin like trash." Lucy muttered grinning. Edo-Natsu shrugged and began walking beside Lucy all the way.

So for the next few minutes, they walked the dark street-lit lanes of Magnolia in silence. Lucy and Edo-Natsu would whisper things at each other sometimes, but otherwise, everything was completely quiet… until Gajeel decided to play Sherlock Holmes and ask them questions…

"So, how did you two meet?" he said, glancing over his shoulder at Lucy. The mage in question glanced at Edo-Natsu and smiled. It was time to put her writing skills to use.

"I met him for the first time a few weeks into the day I just got back from Edolas." Lucy acted like she was replaying that memory in her mind, when in fact; she was actually procuring the next scene to add. Gajeel stopped in his tracks and stared at Edo-Natsu questioningly.

"Oh don't pee your pants Gajeel, he knows that I was trapped in Edolas for over a year and a half. He knows everything about me, about the guild, and about you acting as my cousin." Lucy informed him. The iron dragonslayer was still frozen in his place.

"Plus, he knows that your precious bookworm is… how shall I say this? Loaded?" Lucy taunted him, earning an almost punch on the face from Gajeel but was able to dodge it in time.

"Calm down, I'm just ruffling your tail feathers. Besides, I'm sure everyone's gonna notice in a little while. Didn't you say she was two months already? I'm sure that little bump's gonna pop out of her dresses sooner or later." Lucy said nonchalantly, causing Gajeel to blush at her obvious attempt at making him embarrassed. Edo-Natsu was slightly amused at the terrifying man's discomfort and thanked the God's that he wasn't in Gajeel's shoes. Lucy could be very straight forward when she wanted to.

"How'd the conversation get from you to me?" The older man asked, turning away from Lucy. The ebony-haired woman shrugged and placed a hand on her _cousin's _shoulder.

"I'm just that good. Anyway, are we there yet? We've been walking for half an hour now." She asked, looking around the area they were currently in. There were trees all around them, and the stone pavement slowly disappeared until it was just pure earthen ground.

"We're almost there. Just a few more minutes… What? Tired already?" Gajeel tried to tease back, but failed anyway when Lucy began walking ahead of them.

"How can you even have thought of asking Kourin out? Much less end up being together?" The iron dragonslayer murmured, a dark aura emitting from his back. Edo-Natsu smiled and decided to continue walking. He was about to answer when Lucy suddenly appeared beside him and rested her elbow on his shoulder.

"I'm an awesome person. Now shut up and bring us to your house already…" Lucy snapped at him. She was feeling a little tired now, the effects of her battle earlier this morning surfacing all of a sudden.

"You're so impatient for a person who's staying in someone else's house." Gajeel mumbled to himself, sulking and leading them quicker to his house. Edo-Natsu grinned at their seemingly brother-sister relationship and quickened his pace to match the two other mages. When they reached a clearing with a house standing there surrounded by trees, the two visitors stopped dead on their tracks.

What Lucy saw, she didn't expect. Gajeel's house was a huge two-storey glass and metal building with an iron fence and a large gate. The front lawn was dark but it was obvious it had flowers and that it was tended to everyday. Under the moon and stars light there wasn't much she could see, but she knew that when it was day the place would be astounding.

"You sure this is your house?" Lucy couldn't stop herself from asking. Gajeel glared at her but continued walking forward to open the gate.

"Shut up." He grumbled, continuing forward to unlock the door now leading the way inside. Lucy noted that there was a very familiar pair of brown boots cast aside at the entry way. Obviously, Gajeel didn't own it, so she'd have to remember hard who it belonged to just so she could tease him later on. But she had an inkling suspicion that a certain blue haired solid script mage was missing a pair of russet boots.

"Follow me, no detours. Sleep for the night and leave in the morning. Rules: Stay in the room you're sleeping at, no prowling. If you gotta go, hold it in. Disturb me in my sleep, die. In the morning, fix up your stuff and leave as soon as you're done." Gajeel said, directing them towards the second floor not even bothering to turn on the lights.

"Hardcore rules…" Edo-Natsu and Lucy mumbled at the same time, following the owner of the house.

"This is the extra room. Flame head, follow me." Gajeel instructed, leaving Lucy alone to scout her bedroom for the night. Sliding the iron door open, wincing at the metal screeching against metal and groaning when she realized that the room she was in seemed just like a prison cell, she pulled out her key pouch from under her skirt and plucked Aries' key from the bunch.

"Open!" Lucy said, not minding to complete the chant. She's already mastered the art of calling out her spirits without needing to say their gates, but she still needs to hold the key though.

In a puff of pink fluff (ooh, that rhymes), the spirit of the zodiac of the ram appeared. The shy female spirit bowed to Lucy before placing a rather bashful hand over her mouth.

"G-good-evening, master…" The pink haired young woman greeted the ebony haired lady in front of her before looking around.

"Good evening too Aries and didn't I tell you to call me Lucy already?" Lucy grinned, looking around the room while she searched for a bed.

"I-I'm sorry… please forgive me… L-Lucy-san." Aries stuttered, apologizing again. Lucy rolled her eyes heavenwards but smiled at the spirit anyway.

"I'd prefer it if you removed the –san at the end, but it's a start. So, can I ask a favor?" The celestial mage asked, a little disappointed for finding that there wasn't a bed or anything to sleep on in this room.

"Of-ofcourse Lucy-san… what is it?" Aries asks. Lucy turns to face her spirit and pointed to the floor.

"Would you mind making me a sort of futon to sleep on?" She raised her eyebrows in question.

"N-no, I wouldn't… anything for y-you Lucy-san…" The zodiac spirit smiles, stretching her arms out in front of her…

"Wool Cushion!" She exclaimed, as spirals of pink fluffy wool shot out from her hands. Lucy grinned and patted Aries on the shoulder.

"Thanks a bunch Aries, you can go back now." She said. "Oh, and tell the others that I'm sorry for not calling them for a while… especially Leo, I'm sure he's angry." Lucy added. Aries nodded her head and waved before breaking down into little pink shining particles.

After Aries was gone, Lucy fiddled with the bunch of keys in her hand before ending at a golden key with the sign of the heavenly scales drawn in dark purple ink across the ivory key face.

"Open." She whispered, pointing the key on the floor. A violet seal opens and the spirit of scales materialized in front of her soon after.

"Good-evening Master…" A deep and justified voice rang out inside the room. Lucy grinned at the spirit in front of her before sitting onto the wool cushion Aries conjured for her.

"Yo, Libra. Been a while right?" Lucy asked casually. She found Libra's keys in the hand of a dark guild member and gained it right after she defeated Libra's old master.

"I suppose. I see that you've returned to your guild?" The woman asked, standing statuesquely in front of Lucy with both arms dangling on her sides with the scales hanging below her hands.

"Yeah… it's kind of nice being back." Lucy answered patting the space next to her, indicating that she wanted Libra to sit next to her.

"That's good. But why didn't you show them that you're truly Lucy Heartfilia and not just some made up character named Kourin Redfox?" Libra asked, obliging to Lucy's offer. Her owner shrugged, lying on her back while she sat at the foot of the bed.

"I don't know. Do you think I did the right thing Libra?" Lucy asked, placing her twin swords beside the cushion and within her reach.

"It is said that one's true intentions lie within their eyes and what I see in yours are of confusion, anger, and self-pity. Master, in my opinion, what you did was right in the sense that you wanted to protect yourself. From what? I do not know…" The spirit of the scales answered, presenting her own opinion.

"I'm confused, yes. A little angry too and I admit that I pity myself for being forgotten by what I called my family. But me trying to protect myself?" Lucy wondered, resting her right arm over her forehead and glancing at Libra.

"That is simply what I can see, master. But believe in me when I say that you have nothing to fear just as long as you trust in yourself… and you trust in us." The spirit answered, placing a comforting hand on Lucy's thigh. The spirit mage sighed and nodded her head, thankful that she found Libra's key.

"Thanks Libra." She smiled. The spirit squeezed Lucy's thigh before starting to dematerialize of her own accord, knowing that Lucy was going to release her anyway.

"Anytime, master…" She bowed before completely disappearing. Lucy let out a breath and stared at the ceiling, closing her eyes moments later as she dozed off.

* * *

><p><strong>Meanwhile… at Gajeel's room…<strong>

* * *

><p>The two males already reached Gajeel's room and were about to enter when they heard a loud puffing sound from the room Lucy was in. Gajeel made a move to go to her when Edo-Natsu stopped him.<p>

"That's just her and her spirit." He informed. Gajeel stared at the corridor, waiting for a girl to scream when he heard nothing. He turned his head to face Edo-Natsu and glared at the boy before pushing the door to his room open.

Edo-Natsu shrugged and followed suit, gawking at the room once he entered. It was a wide one, with a large king sized bed made of iron and surprisingly soft looking mattresses and covers at the center. There was a book shelf and a writing table next to a closed window and Edo-Natsu wondered if Gajeel really owned that or if it belonged to someone else. A white door stood beside a large dresser, seemingly like a private bathroom or a walk-in closet.

"You sleep on the couch." Gajeel pointed out a set of divan's at the corner room with a television set at the middle. He nodded and proceeded to go there when he felt something thrown on his head. Pulling it off him, he saw that he was holding a thin black blanket with skulls and everything on it. Edo-Natsu glanced up and caught Gajeel strewn on his bed, the man's back facing him.

"Thanks." He muttered before turning back to walk towards the longest couch. Edo-Natsu was all settled and comfortable, and he was about to close his eyes to get some sleep when Gajeel spoke.

"You know all about Kourin, right?" He asked, his back still facing Edo-Natsu.

"Yeah, why?" The latter replied facing Gajeel's back.

"So you know what her real name is?"

"Uhuh, Lucy Heartfilia."

"And why she changed her appearance?"

"Yeah, she just explained it to me earlier today. The last time I saw her, she was blond."

"So you know that we really aren't cousins?"

"Yep. She called you the metal-faced idiot who was stupid enough to challenge you when you were in a bad mood…" At this answer, Gajeel sat straight up and glared at Edo-Natsu.

"What? I'm just telling you what she told me." Edo-Natsu defended himself, donning a slight smile.

"Tsk."

A moment of silence went between the two before Gajeel laid back down and stared at the ceiling.

"Do you really love Lucy?" He asked, peeking at the other male through his peripheral vision. Edo-Natsu's face snapped to the side to stare at Gajeel, his whole face burning with embarrassment.

"I-I…" Edo-Natsu stuttered, thinking of a way out of it, but gave up anyway. "Yes." He sighed, staring at the ceiling too.

"That's good to hear…" Gajeel muttered before pulling at his covers. "Now sleep or I'm gonna have to punch you to sleep." The iron dragonslayer threatened. Edo-Natsu shivered at the risk of the older man doing just that to him and so he closed his eyes and dozed off into a dream filled with chocolate brown eyes smiling at him, and blond hair intertwined with his.

"Night Gajeel..." He whispered, cuddling the pillow.

"G'night, Kaizen…" Gajeel smirked, taking a liking to the flame haired guy. Aside from that, he would respect their relationship with Lucy and treat him like a real man would to his cousin's boyfriend. Satisfied with his thoughts, he too fell prey to sleep and dreamt of a blue haired bookworm and a small bundle laughing in his arms…

* * *

><p><strong>Raven: So how was it? I think it was kinda boring though, since it was long and stuff. Besides, this really was just a filler like I mentioned earlier. And wow! This is my longest chapter ever! Teehee... <strong>

**Any questions and corrections? Suggestions and ideas? Go ahead and leave a review! It will be very much appreciated... **

**THANKS A BUNCH! **


	10. 09: Oooh Boy

**Raven: Hey guys, this is the latest installment for FMN… I'm too tired to even be typing right now, but since you guys are too awesome to be kept waiting, I shall work hard for your sakes. Also, this is another "character building" thing… or maybe a filler since nothing important is gonna happen. **

**Oh, and I was supposed to post this last Friday but then there was a problem with my account ( I can't seem to open it) so I proceeded with Saturday, but then I was supposed to do my projects… and so it had to be today... **

**If you notice any errors and crazy things that might not and should not be in the story, blame it on Natsu. **

**Natsu: Hey! Why me?**

**Raven: You almost burned my laptop… And you almost burned ME!**

**Natsu: (chuckles nervously and hides behind a couch) It wasn't my fault you were standing next to me…**

**Raven: (fumes) My FAULT? I was sitting by the computer at the second floor! How could it have been my fault! You were freaking outside playing wizards dodge ball with Gray when your freaking fire freaking flew in through the window and freaking fell on me and the freaking laptop! **

**Gray: Whoa! Chill Raven!**

**Raven: *sighs heavily* Yeah, yeah… anyway Natsu, you're still in trouble, ya hear me? (Points an accusing finger at him and emits a terrible aura that rivals Erza when pissed)**

**Natsu: (nods, scared shitless) A-aye… **

**Raven: Okay, back to the story… Where was I? Oh yeah, blame it all on Natsu… plus, Mr. Hiro Mashima wants to say something to you guys. **

**Hiro: Raven Gonzales (keysXdragon) doesn't own Fairy Tail… but she does own the ideas and story plot. **

**Raven: Thanks Mashima-sama! And with that, let me first present to you the responses to your reviews.**

**RESPONSE CORNER**

**To All Who Thought This Is an Edo-NatsuxLucy fic: **I'm sorry, but this will never be an Edo-NatsuxLucy pairing. I really am a fully fledged Lucy Heartfilia heart Natsu Dragneel fan and that would never, ever, even if the rivers run dry, the sun explodes into a black hole, and the world ends, change (bow). If you want a fic about them though, you can tell me… I'll make one.

**Jezzaanne: **You're not a picky reader and not a mean person. Actually, I'm always waiting for that person who'd point out my mistakes and clarify things. Of course! Lucy would never be able to beat Erza… that's just too damn strong of her if she'd be able to. Oh, and I'm a messy writer so I think I'm gonna take a long time in adjusting the story… but I "WILL" get there. About the scenes, yeah… I'm weak at that aspect too. And Jellal? I know all about the manga and the anime, so I know about Jellal getting captured by the council and locked up in jail and then currently he is free and helping Fairy Tail out in the Grand Magic games… I just need him for the story since I have an idea for his use.

Thanks for pointing the part where I put A/N's in the middle of sentences out too… I promise to now use numbers and foot notes so that the imagination trail would not be ruined. Plus, about the description thing… it was too taxing for me to be describing things during that time… but I think I'm kinda good in the description part so… yeah…

Hahaha… "I'll kindly shut up now". Love that part. I'll take all your reviews and critiques to mind so maybe expect some improvements? Not sure about that… Oh, and I decided not to PM you my repsonse so that other readers who might have the same questions and comments can see it and be satisfied.

Thank you very much! I hope to be reading more of you in the future… I love long critique responses! They get me running for my drafts and writing…

**Aoi-sempai: **Thanks! I can't believe this story is one that would be craved… Ah well… I'm not very clear on real and unreal words… sometimes I even add random words that I don't know their meanings of. Plus, I usually update on weekends… so check for updates on FMN during those times.

**GoldenRoseLuceTanya: **Edo-Lucy would probably do one of her punishment techniques on Edo-Natsu or maybe Lucy… dunno… why don't you give me an idea?

**FunkistReader: **That would be answered now… just read longer and you'll see! Hint: Levy. Ow, shucks, it's so freaking obvious!

**Jesse Sakura: **Yeah… I wasn't really planning on adding that part, it was just a random idea… but I'm glad you liked it!

**nightwatcher55: **Nope… Gajeel's not aware that Kaizen's Edo-Natsu…

**Chrys Stone: **Is that how you call it? Character building? Oh well… I still have a lot to learn then. And yeah, two Natsu's in Fairy Tail is… "HOT".

**TitaniaScarlet: **Natsu's somehow getting closer to finding out who Lucy really is… and those tiny flashbacks and memories plus that album Lucy stole from him is one factor of that. xD

**Natsu's at a Payphone: **Yes, Natsu and Lisanna are dating… was it not clear? I'm sorry…

**bunannza: **To clarify, I'm somewhat a sadist… so, uhmmm… yeah~ (awkwardly laughs) And sure! Edo-Natsu's gonna end up happy! Don't worry!

**passer: **awww~ thanks so much… I enjoyed reading your review too xD. I love the Gajeel and Lucy friendship too! They're just epic. And the reason will be resolved maybe later? I dunno, I have an idea on how but I don't know when and where to put it.

**To the Others: **Hello minna! I'm sorry for not including you guys, but I really am so thankful for your reviews and continuous reads! I'm so happy! I swear, if not for the reviews I would've lost all courage to continue this story. (Traditional Japanese bow).

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

Lucy was pissed…

No, she was beyond that…

She was currently experiencing an emotion much worse than anger… and it was all because of a pink haired idiot who dared walk in on her while she was changing at the Infirmary.

Why was she changing at the infirmary in the first place? Well… let's go back to the earlier hours of the day, before now, when she just woke up from the most awesome sleep she's ever had in a month.

=%=%=%=%=%=%=

The ebony haired girl stirred as the first rays of sunshine went through the window and hit her right on the face. She cracked her left eye open and squinted at the sudden brightness in contrast to the darkness behind her eyelids.

"Ah… it's morning already…" She muttered, opening her other eye. Lucy sat up and then instinctively checked her hip for the pouch that held her keys. Smiling when she felt them there, safe and secure, she sat up and stretched like a cat.

Lucy was about to leap off the cushion when the iron doors slid open and revealed Edo-Natsu. He held a soft smile when he saw that Lucy was already wide awake and entered.

"Morning Rin…" He grinned, using a new nickname for her. He wasn't sure if Lucy was going to accept it, so he remained still and quiet while the girl contemplated on this.

Lucy blinked once, twice, and thrice before grinning and leaping off the bed just as she was about to moments ago.

"Morning Kai…" She answered, watching as the wool cushion disappeared right when she got off it. Shrugging, she reached down and picked the twin swords and began strapping them on her waist. Edo-Natsu's smile grew larger when he heard this response and he felt a different warmth inside his stomach.

"We better get going before Gajeel wakes up." Lucy told him while she undid the clips that held her hair up and let the soft strands of black hair hang just above her waist. Edo-Natsu was captivated by that moment but caught himself staring at her.

"He's already gone and left the house, Rin." Edo-Natsu informed her, leaning onto the door as he folded his arms over his chest.

"Really?" Lucy asked, sweeping her bangs to the side and clipping some of her hair back and pinning most of it into a semi-ponytail. Edo-Natsu nodded.

"Well then we better get going too… I really~ have the urge explore his house but I figured he might want to skin me alive if I did… wanna eat at the guild before searching for a flat, Kai?" Lucy suggested, getting the hang of calling Edo-Natsu with the new nickname.

"That'd be great!" He grinned, offering an arm to her. She stared at it for a moment and chuckled, linking hers to his. As they walked out of the room, they noticed for the first time how clean and orderly Gajeel's house was.

Last night, the owner didn't bother to switch on the lights so of course they couldn't have known how clean and tidy the place was. There were noticeable objects that were obviously not the iron dragonslayer's and when they passed a white door with flowers painted at the bottom part, they guessed Gajeel had a visitor who might stay permanently some day.

When they finally got out, after passing a surprisingly super clean kitchen, a pristine living room, and a library deserving of a King, both finally got outside. The sun was half-way up and the little creatures of the forest stared at them from behind bushes and their hidden nests. At the front lawn, the flowers were bright and a stark comparison from the dark house it belonged to.

Various flowers such as daisies, tulips, almond blossoms, bachelor buttons, clematis', and other colorful flowers filled the lawn making it an array of ethereal beauty that rivaled a Faeries paradise. Lucy took in the sight before her, careful to memorize every part of the lawn.

Edo-Natsu smiled warmly, noting the different glow on Lucy's face. She was happy and that made him happy as well.

"Well I would never have associated a man like Gajeel with a lawn like this, but he _has _that mysterious visitor anyway so I shouldn't be surprised if I found him cooking for that visitor one day." Lucy muttered, chuckling along with Edo-Natsu.

The two continued to walk the path they took last night and found themselves reaching a more modernized pavement until they finally stepped onto the town's normal stone streets. The number of buildings grew and grew until they arrived at the now waking streets of Magnolia.

"Race you to the guild?" Lucy suggested, already posing for a sprint. Edo-Natsu answered with a competitive grin.

"One, two, GO!" he exclaimed, running in full speed. Lucy chuckled gleefully, relishing in the feeling of her hair whipping behind her and her muscles stretching in the run.

Both were equally fast runners since they've trained together and soon enough, they got to the front doors of the guild breathless. Lucy leaned her palms onto her thighs as she caught her breath while Edo-Natsu slumped onto the guild's outer wall and gasped for air.

"S'been a while since we ran like that together, hasn't it?" He asked, smiling at Lucy. The latter grinned back and stood straight, now able to breathe less raggedly than before.

"Yeah…" She whispered, fixing up her hair. Edo-Natsu stood straight as well and smoothed his coat before running a hand through his already very messy red locks. Just when they were about to push the doors open, they were pushed open by a wave of salty ice cold tears.

Drenched in water, Lucy shivered and narrowed her eyes. The early birds of the guild stared in fear as the iron dragonslayer's cousin prowled the guild for the source of the reason why she was drenched all over. Edo-Natsu on the other hand, due to his newly attained fire magic was instantly drying, steam rolling off of his body.

"Who was it?" Lucy hissed, stopping in front of Macao who was a little bit frightened at the woman's devilish aura hitting him like a brick wall. Although he was an older mage, he couldn't help but feel threatened by the delinquent looking girl. Tentatively he pointed to Juvia who was crying a river near the bar. Seeing her for the first time in almost 2 years, Lucy felt nostalgic.

"Who is she?" She feigned complete innocence at the identity of the water mage and willed the demonic aura to disappear for at least a moment. Macao gulped and thanked Kami that he wasn't dead yet.

"She's Juvia Locksar, Gray's girlfriend." He answered, relieved when the female Redfox lost interest in him and walked back to her boyfriend. Seriously, she was as terrifying as Gajeel and her glare rivaled that of Erza's.

Edo-Natsu watched as Lucy approached him, an annoyed look on her face and her body all wet and turning a pale shade.

"You better change into something else, Rin… you might get a cold." He smiled, taking off his coat and handing it to her. Lucy smiled back and accepted the coat. She was about to answer when someone suddenly popped out of nowhere in between them and squealed in a fan girl kind of way.

"That was so cute~~" Mirajane squeaked, hands clasped together in a seemingly dreamy style. She just got out of the kitchen and was going to call for someone to help her carry a huge table outside when she saw Kourin-san and Kaizen-kun all cutesy and lovey-dovey.

"Uhmmm…" Both mages hummed, speechless.

"Why are you all wet Kourin-san? You're shivering!" the barmaid exclaimed, worry on her features. Suddenly, she grabbed Lucy's wrist and pulled her along.

"Let's get you some dry clothes, ne? Kaizen-kun, do you mind?" Mira stopped suddenly and asked the red headed male.

"It's fine… I wouldn't want Rin to get a cold…" he smiled, waving a hand. The take-over mage squealed inwardly at their intimate name-calling and continued forward.

The others in the guild sweat dropped at the way Mirajane was treating Gajeel's cousin. Somehow, seeing that scene reminded them of someone but they didn't know who. All of them felt weird and different ever since Kourin came… but they didn't know why. It was unnerving.

When the two females disappeared into the infirmary, Macao and the other males who were there decided to talk to Kaizen since he seemed like a good guy and a way kinder person than the Redfox Cousins…

"So, you're Kourin-san's boyfriend huh?" Macao asked. Edo-Natsu nodded, fascinated by the distinct difference between Edo-Macao and this Macao.

"How'd you manage to get her?" Wakaba wondered, eyeing the red haired boy.

"P-pardon?" Edo-Natsu asked. He was slightly taken by surprise from that question.

"I mean, how'd you woo her?" The older man clarified, interested at the boy. Just when Edo-Natsu was going to answer, the guild doors slammed open revealing Natsu and Lisanna.

"Yo!" The fire dragonslayer greeted, raising an open hand. Lisanna smiled and said a polite good morning. Everyone acknowledged them but returned to face Edo-Natsu.

"I… I don't know." He stuttered; flustered at how much everyone was crowding him. _Is this how Lucy was treated last night? _He wondered to himself, taking a small step back.

"You're the guy the K girl was with yesterday!" Natsu exclaimed, busting through the crowd around Edo-Natsu. The latter sweat-dropped, nervous to speak to his counterpart… what if he was found out? What would happen to Lucy's hard work? Oh well… he'd just have to practice his acting skills…

"You're the idiot who stole a piece of my fire chicken!" He hissed a little surprised at how good his acting skills was. Everyone backed off, most shocked at the retort.

"It was delicious, I'll tell you that!" Natsu grinned, patting his belly. "Speaking of food… Lisanna, can you get me some of my usual?" He called over to the young take-over mage. She nodded in response and began walking towards the kitchen in search of her sister.

"So where's Gajeel's cousin?" Natsu asked, leaning forward to sniff the guy out. He smelled kind of familiar and he felt kind of familiar too.

"You mean Kourin? She's at the infirmary, she got drenched so she's cha-""Thanks!" Natsu interrupted him and dashed off towards the infirmary, leaving Edo-Natsu a little annoyed. And then something in his mind clicked. Lucy was changing.

Right at that precise moment, he heard an enraged yell and some banging noises at the place where Natsu ran off to. He pitied his counterpart and decided to really walk over to the bar and order something for Lucy and himself. He'd rather not be at the presence of Lucy's pissed off self.

=%=%=%=%=%=%=

And now, we turn back to Lucy who just threw a large silver urinal pan to Natsu's face.

"What the hell are you freaking doing here ya pervert!" Lucy yelled giving him her super Lucy kick on the stomach; 100 times more powerful and less idiotic looking. The poor boy flew into the wall and out of the room and fell right onto the table where the newly arrived Erza was about to eat her triple deck, strawberry filled cream cake. She then slammed the door closed and continued to dress angrily.

"OW!" Natsu howled in pain, clutching his severely hit abdomen… spitting blood in the process.

"Damn! That girl could kick!" He mused. He was about to stand when he felt a sudden chill run down his spine. Slowly, he turned his head and both of his eyes turned into saucers when he saw the demonic aura the scarlet haired knight emitted.

"E-Erza?" He squeaked, crawling backwards smashing most of the cake in the process.

"Nat… Su…" She growled and then re-quipped into her most powerful armor. In a flash of silver bright light, Natsu was surrounded with over 30 swords, all rotating around his neck arms and legs.

"A-a-aye?" He squeaked.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Inside the infirmary…<strong>_

* * *

><p>"Gawd! That idiot!" Lucy grumbled to herself as she angrily pulled the black skirt Mira gave her.<p>

"I can't believe that after almost two years of not seeing each other, he's still as stupid as ever!" She continued, this time shoving on a dark purple gothic long sleeved shirt with shoulder cut-offs and torn ends.

"How this guild still stands is a mystery!" She added pushing her feet into the knee-high purple to black boots she was handed. Still muttering evil thoughts to herself, she wore the coat Edo-Natsu gave her over herself and finished dressing.

She sighed and proceeded to walk out of the room when the door was opened for her… and right at the center of the door stood a small man with balding spiky white hair and a golden coat draped over his shoulders. It was Makarov… and he seemed dead-shocked.

Makarov stared at the girl in front of him. He couldn't believe his eyes, but his heart told him so. The girl before him was the girl who's been missing for almost 2 years now… It was Lucy!

"Ch-child…" He whispered, tears beginning to form at the sides of his eyes. He took a shaky step forward and stretched out his hand. In his heart's eye, the girl standing there had long blond hair that ended just on her waist, her eyes were that of the softest hazel, and the smile she wore could never be compared to anything.

"Lucy?" Makarov whispered once more, wanting it to be true and not just another illusion. The ebony haired girl smiled the smile he missed and kneeled down to take his hand in hers.

"I'm back… Master" She said, tears brimming at the edge of her eyes. Makarov sniffed and then pulled Lucy into a very tight hug. Lucy ignored the fact that the old man's face was currently resting on her chest and hugged him back. A few minutes of silence and just hugging each other passed until both let go and smiled at each other.

"Welcome back…" He greeted, a very fond and happy smile etched on his already wrinkly face. Lucy grinned and nodded her head.

"It's good to be back." She answered.

* * *

><p><strong>Meanwhile…<strong>

* * *

><p>"Here you go Kaizen-kun!" Mirajane smiled, placing down a platter of food for two. The boy smiled back and thanked her before turning around to wait patiently for Lucy to arrive. He watched as his poor Earthland self was being used as a foot stool by the ever terrifying Erza Scarlet with Gray Fullbuster laughing at his rival's demise. Juvia Locksar was now in a very good mood (compared to her crying self moments before) and she was chuckling beside her boyfriend. He didn't know why she was crying but it seemed like she calmed down once Gray came.<p>

"Aren't you going to eat now?" he heard the ash haired barmaid ask him. Edo-Natsu shook his head in response and turned back to face her. It was rude not to look at the person you are talking to.

"I'm waiting for Rin… I wonder what's taking her long." He mumbled. Mirajane chuckled at his utter cuteness and pointed at something behind him. Edo-Natsu looked and grinned toothily when he saw Lucy walking towards him. Mirajane saw this and stared. He somehow resembled Natsu the way that he smiled.

"Hey! I got your food!" He called her over, noticing the small man walking beside her.

"Thanks Kai… but do you mind eating without me? The master wants to talk." She asked, her eyes apologetic. Edo-Natsu noticed this and shook his head.

"It's fine. I'll wait for you…" He answered. Lucy's face brightened up and she gave him a short hug before following the small man up the second floor. Mirajane was all squeals and giggles at that scene.

"You two look so great together!" She cooed, catching Edo-Natsu off guard.

"Uhmmm… uh, thanks?" He didn't really know what to say to that. The take-over mage giggled once more before reaching under the bar counter and covered the food with some film. After a while, as he was about to have the urge to take a bite out of his delicious looking food, Mirajane suddenly asked a random question.

"Do you mind me asking a series of questions ranging from normal to personal?" Mirajane quipped, glancing at him. Edo-Natsu thought for a moment before smiling and nodding.

"I don't mind. What is it?"

"How long have the two of you been together?"

"Roughly six months."

"Where did you meet?" At this question, Edo-Natsu thanked God that he and Lucy had already talked about the facts.

"We bumped into each other during one of her missions at Clover town…"

"How nice… and the two of you have been together ever since?"

"Yes."

"Are you planning on marrying her?" Edo-Natsu choked. "I guess not…" Mirajane smiled. Edo-Natsu stared at her and shook his head. That girl was exactly like Edo-Mirajane… sweet yet terrifying. He wondered how everyone handled her so well.

"Well, see you later Kaizen-kun. I need to cater to the other member's too." She nodded to him and then walked off. He then decided to lay his head on his arms and wait patiently for Lucy while avoiding women like Mirajane. At that moment, Lisanna walked out of the kitchen door and placed a platter of flaming food next to the one Edo-Natsu ordered.

"Natsu?" She looked around and covered her mouth to cover the giggle that almost escaped her mouth. Natsu was still a foot stool and a pink and frilly one at that. This time, Gray brought some pink stool covers and gave them to Erza. The ice mage was obviously having a blast.

"Oh well, he can eat these later." She muttered to herself and then sat on a stool behind the bar. She then noticed an unfamiliar member(1) sitting directly in front of her. Curious to know who he was, she tapped his shoulder and smiled at him.

"Hey. You're new here aren't you?" Lisanna asked when Edo-Natsu raised his head and looked at her.

"Yeah." He merely mumbled before hiding his face back in his arms again. Lisanna was a little irritated that the boy didn't so much as give her a polite smile and wondered why he was even here. At that moment, Wendy and Charle entered the guild.

"Good morning everyone!" The sweet little dragonslayer greeted. Everyone waved and said hello.

"Good morning Wendy" Lisanna smiled at the girl. "Good morning Charle." She nodded at the cat.

"Good morning Lisanna-san," Wendy answered, taking a seat beside the slumped up figure of a red haired boy. "Uhmmm, not to be rude but may I know who he is?" She asked and glanced at Edo-Natsu.

"I don't really know, but I think he's a new member." Lisanna answered unsurely. Edo-Natsu heard their conversation and sat up straight. He turned to look at Wendy and smiled.

"Hi. I'm Kaizen, I'm not yet a member of this guild but… my girlfriend is. Nice to meet you." He offered a hand. Wendy blushed a bit but accepted it. Lisanna was a little unpleased.

"I'm Wendy Marvel. Can I ask who you're girlfriend is?" She asked. Edo-Natsu patted her head and smiled again.

"Sure. She's Kourin Redfox, Gajeel's cousin. She just joined here yesterday." He answered. Wendy's eyes widened at the answer.

"Gajeel-kun has a cousin! Is she a dragonslayer too?" Wendy asked, a little excited. It would be great to have an older female dragonslayer around to guide her.

"I'm sorry but last I heard she isn't one of them dragonslayers. Why? Are you one?" Edo-Natsu asked. How could a tiny innocent girl like her be a dragonslayer, when the ones he knew were bloodthirsty idiots?

"Ah, yes." Wendy said shyly. She liked this Kaizen-kun and he seemed like a very good older brother. Just like Natsu-kun.

Just then, the master's office door was kicked open and out came a beautiful ebony haired girl with a pissed off expression. Wendy stared at her and couldn't help but try to sniff her out. She had a familiar smell that reminded her of a field of spring flowers and something spicy.

"Why the hell do I have to join them?" Lucy yelled over her shoulder as she stormed down the staircase. Everyone watched as the master walked after her calmly with a small fond smile.

"Because I said so, child. You must listen to me since I am your master and you are a new member of this establishment." Makarov answered. Lucy's face contorted into an even more pissed off expression.

"I don't even know those people! Just Gajeel and Kaizen are enough, I don't need them!" She growled hands balled into tight fists.

"Gajeel is a bloodthirsty creature whilst Kaizen isn't even a member yet." Makarov answered. Some of the guys snickered at the description of the iron dragonslayer and wondered what he would have done if he heard that.

"Then make him a member now!" Lucy hissed. Makarov shook his head.

"Even if he becomes a member now, that would be all the more reason for me to let Juvia, Wendy, Gajeel and the exceeds join you on your first mission." Most of the people inside the guild went silent. When did they ever need to make new members join with old members during their first mission? Wendy was surprised while Juvia was too busy staring lovingly at her boyfriend.

"This is totally unfair!" Lucy whined now. Right then, Gajeel entered the guild with Levy holding Pantherlily in her arms beside him.

"What's totally unfair cuz?" Gajeel asked, leading Levy to one of the safest tables in the guild. Lucy glared at him.

"Why do you have to be a bloodthirsty idiot?" Lucy pointed an accusing finger on the iron dragonslayer. Gajeel stared at her blankly before realizing it was an insult.

"Hey now! I just got here, what's with that greeting!" He snarled. Levy looked from Gajeel to his cousin, and then back again. Somehow, she felt like she was seeing a new side of her dragonslayer.

"This old geezer here says I have to _join forces _with a girl named Wendy, Juvia, you, Kaizen and some bunch of weird cats called exceeds!" Lucy pointed to Makarov who was smiling pleasantly. Charle narrowed her eyes at the ebony haired girl, Lily was slightly shocked. Happy? He wasn't at the guild yet. At that retort, Gajeel got the hint and smirked.

"What's wrong with that?" He asked, surprising mostly everyone in the guild. Gajeel loved being alone except when with Lily and Levy. Now, him liking the idea of teaming up with a bunch of girls would just mean two things. Either he was getting crazier than he already was, or he has some kind of plan.

"Everything's wrong with that!" Lucy exclaimed. This time, before Gajeel could answer, Erza intervened. During which, Natsu silently escaped and hid somewhere he deemed safe from titania.

"Now, Kourin-san. Let's not be selfish… give these ladies a chance. And it is rude to call the exceeds weird when you haven't even met them." Erza said, standing a little to the right of Lucy.

"Who are you?" Lucy acted as if she didn't know Erza. Erza remembered that she never really did introduce herself to the new member and thought that maybe this was the right moment.

"Erza Scarlet, re-quip mage." The knight offered her hand. Lucy looked at her and then at the hand before accepting it.

"And on what authority do you have to speak to me that way?" Lucy asked. She was still scared of Erza, but it wouldn't hurt to try and talking back to the woman. Besides, she wasn't Lucy Heartfilia who was terrified to defy Erza. The people of the guild including Makarov were surprised. No one dared talk back to Erza… not even when the knight was wrong, which she seldom was.

"I am a proud member of Fairy Tail. I know the master would never give orders such as this unless he has a good plan for you. And it is disrespectful for a mere newbie like you to act that rashly towards master." The scarlet haired mage answered coolly. Lucy stayed silent for a while before frowning.

"Tsk. Fine, you win." Lucy grumbled. Erza was pleased that the new member was a person who listened to other people. She placed a hand on Lucy's shoulder and smiled.

"I am sure you will get along well with them." Titania nodded her head before returning to her table. She looked around but saw that Natsu was nowhere to be found. She shrugged and decided to let him go, besides, getting a new batch of cake was better.

"Okay, now that you've accepted this matter. Juvia Locksar, Wendy Marvel, Gajeel Redfox, Kaizen Haven-Farrow, Happy, Charle, and Pantherlily! Proceed to my office now!" Makarov announced. Lucy inwardly smiled. Actually, the whole thing was just a play. It wasn't obvious? Great!

Everyone who was called walked towards the office. Wendy led Edo-Natsu, with Charle hovering over them. Juvia didn't want to part ways with her Gray-sama but it was master's orders. Lily suggested he go search for Happy, while Gajeel just smirked and followed suit.

* * *

><p><strong>Inside the office…<strong>

* * *

><p>Makarov sat on his swivel chair and looked around him. Lucy was sitting casually on top of a 7 feet tall shelf of books with Kaizen right beside her. Gajeel stood by the window, waiting for Lily to return with Happy. Juvia and Wendy both sat on the chairs by the wall, with Charle sitting on Wendy's lap.<p>

"I shall start now…" Makarov said. Right on cue, Lily flew in with Happy holding a fish right behind him. The guild master nodded to them and continued. "We are all gathered here today to – "

"This isn't a freaking wedding!" Gajeel and Lucy pointed out. Both snapped their heads to look at each other before smirking. Makarov chuckled and continued.

"To cut the long story short, she's Lucy." Makarov pointed to the black haired girl. Lucy then decided to let go of the transformation magic she was on and revealed herself. As she jumped off the shelf, blond hair curled out of her head, red eyes melted into warm hazel ones, and she wore her old blue pleated skirt and the white blouse. Wendy and Juvia stared at the newly transformed girl. Happy dropped the fish he was munching on. Lily's eyes widened. Gajeel and Edo-Natsu smiled. And I mean smiled.

"Lucy-san?" Wendy muttered, standing up. Charle was shocked. She never expected this.

"Lucy?" Juvia whispered, both hands clasped together and tears brimming at the edge of her eyes.

"L-Lucy…" Happy barely even said the word before flying into the ebony haired girl's arms and bawling like a baby. "Lucy! Lucy, you're alive! You're back! You're back!" Happy cried, embracing the woman tighter.

"Happy…" Lucy smiled, petting the blue cat. She really did miss him and feeling his small furry arms around her reminded her of those days when Happy would have bad dreams and he'd crawl up to her and ask if he could sleep between her and Natsu. That was when Natsu started crashing on her bed without permission and Happy began raiding her stock of fish.

"I'm back guys… Did you miss me?" Lucy asked, looking up. Juvia launched herself to the blond and embraced her. Wendy shyly approached them but then Juvia pulled her in. Charle smiled, relieved. Lily grinned and let out a breath he didn't know he was holding in.

"Where have you been?" Juvia asked. Lucy looked up.

"You know… here… there… Edolas…" She answered. The two females looked at her and hugged her tighter.

"We're so sorry! The guild forgot about you for some reason. We're the only ones who know about you. It was like you were erased from the world!" They confessed. Lucy chuckled and patted their heads with her free hand, the other still holding onto Happy who was still crying.

"I know… Don't need to apologize. It was nobody's fault." Lucy assured them. Juvia let go first and wiped her tears.

"Juvia is so glad!" She smiled. Wendy then stepped away as well and smiled.

"Me too."

"We all are." Makarov added. Gajeel nodded, while Edo-Natsu slightly felt out of place. "Now how about you introduce your 'boyfriend' to us all? Ne, Lucy?" The old man raised an eyebrow. Lucy looked at Edo-Natsu who blushed. She chuckled.

"He's Kaizen Haven-Farrow. I met him at Clover Town. We've known each other for almost half a year now. He knows everything about me, Edolas, Fairy Tail and what happened." She said. Makarov glanced at Edo-Natsu and smiled at the boy. Edo-Natsu shyly nodded and smiled.

"Are you going to be joining us soon?" Makarov asked.

"Of course he is!" Lucy answered. The guild master chortled. Edo-Natsu grinned and shook his head.

"Lucy…" Happy pushed himself at an arm's length away from Lucy and looked at her.

"Hmmm?" The blond answered. Happy just continued to stare at her before hugging her once more.

"I really~ missed you! Please don't disappear again! Don't leave me…" He asked, sniffing. Lucy smiled and made him look at her.

"I never wanted to leave you in the first place." She said and kissed the top of Happy's head. Everyone in the room smiled, even Charle.

"Now that that's settled… all should agree to call Lucy Kourin from now on. Until we find out why the others don't remember her, anyone who mentions Lucy Heartfilia will be punished by me. Clear?"

"Yes…" The younger mages and cats agreed.

"Now then, how about we catch up?" Makarov smiled.

* * *

><p><strong>Raven: And thus, ends the latets chapter of FMN. I'm not really sure if I did well here, but I think it's an okay chapter. So one reason I took long to update was because of school and the horrors of making my Research Proposal. It actually got accepted and so I'm free, as of now. But then here comes Calculus, and now I have to think of my Math Investigation. Any propositions? None? Oh well, sucks for me… <strong>

**Again, questions? Comments? Critiques? Please don't hesitate to tell me. It's highly appreciated. Oh, and for the next update… maybe Next week? **

**So that's all, bye~ **


	11. 010: Sythe

_**Raven: **__**Hey guys… Here's chapter 10 of FMN … Hope you like it! **_

_**Oh, and a reviewer asked me to make a time line of Lucy's life during and after the "Edolas Arc" in my story so here it is:**_

***Lucy was trapped inside an ice pillar for three weeks after Natsu, Wendy, Gajeel and the others set the world of Edolas free from the evil reign of Faust. Two weeks passed and she became a new member of Edo-Fairy Tail.**

***Two months later, Lucy decided she wanted to train to get stronger… she told this to Mirajane, who announced it to everyone, so they tagged along. Going to an open area to which they made as their base camp, they started their new regime. **

***Setting up camp lasted for four weeks, including the time it took for them to wait for Edo-Lucy's return from her mission, and then they set their plan in motion. They trained hard, created rules for their benefit later on and had a lot of fun during the process. Another 3 months came by from this, if I'm not mistaken… **

***Five months passed and their training was over. Now, it is exactly 11 months since Lucy was trapped. During this time, King Mystogan appeared with a portal that "might" have sent Lucy back to Earthland in one piece… which it did. **

***After that, Lucy stayed in the Pergrande Kingdom for a good 9 months and then travelled to Clover Town and stayed there for 4 months, through which she met Gajeel. It is now exactly 1 year, 7 months, and 1 week. **

***After she returned to Magnolia Town with Gajeel, she encountered Edo-Natsu. They agreed to make it seem like they were together. I remember writing that Lucy stayed in Earthland for only 1 year and 5 months, well… that's poop. I'd have to edit stuff to make it clearer, but the real date of her length of stay in Edolas is only 11 months… and then she got back in Earthland for 9 months.**

**Hope it got clear! **

**Thanks! :D**

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><p><strong>CHAPTER TEN: <strong>**FIRST MISSION**

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><p><strong>Normal POV:<strong>

"So, let me get this straight… You're sending me on a mission with the three musketeers?" Lucy asked, glancing at Erza, Natsu, and Gray who stood directly in front of her. Natsu and Gray glared at the girl for calling them musketeers. Erza on the other hand, felt her pride grow. Lisanna was inside the room, sitting quietly beside Natsu. She didn't like the idea of Kourin-san spending time with her team… it felt wrong…

They were all inside the master's office. After Makarov and the others had their little reunion, he decided to give Lucy her first mission. Aside from that, he wanted to test the other three if they were completely erased of any memories of Lucy or if it was just hidden deep in their minds.

"Yes. I know that you are supposed to search for an apartment with Kaizen… and so I've already settled that matter and asked Mirajane to help him." Makarov answered. Lucy just stared at him.

"Why do they have to come with me? I can handle things on my own." She stated, eyeing the three mages once again.

"Yeah master… you never did this with the other new members." Lisanna added. She was a little jealous of the special treatment Kourin-san was having and the way master treated her seemed suspicious.

"Kourin Redfox is a wanted person in Pergrande Kingdom and Clover Town…" He simply stated. Lucy bonked him in the head and glared.

"What the hell? Why'd you suddenly tell them that! I thought I asked you to keep it a secret!" She exclaimed. Erza and the others stared at Lucy. Each contemplating on what to do…

"You asked me, yes… But I never did agree, did I?" Makarov answered slyly, rubbing the sore spot on his head.

"You and your… argh!" Lucy stopped and eyed the four. "What're ya gonna do now, huh?" She asked.

"Why are you wanted?" Natsu asked. He felt like she wasn't that kind of person. She seemed like a good and passionate girl… but he didn't know why he felt that way.

"She eradicated three major dark guilds, killed a dangerous drug lord, and subdued the growing secret assassination guild that aimed to destroy the Magic Council." Makarov again said out of the blue, receiving yet another hit on the head from Lucy.

"When're ya gonna freaking shut yer trap!" She hissed.

"Wait… you're black rose?" Erza asked. She's heard all about the woman who did all that and helped the needy at Clover Town. She actually respected that woman… and to find out that she was standing right in front of her… They were going to be great friends, she was sure of it.

"Yeah, so? You gonna send me to the Magic Council?" Lucy asked, irritated at the master.

"Why'd we do that?" Natsu asked. Lucy glanced at him and raised an eyebrow.

"I did it against protocol. No one's supposed to kill people no matter how evil they are. They're supposed to be sent to the magic council to be put in jail. And I did kill more than an assassin's share of people…" Lucy said, mostly talking to herself. But she didn't feel anything wrong with what she did… actually, she felt more fulfilled than before.

"But you did it for good. You're not a bad person. You're a… you're a hero." Natsu said, looking at Lucy. The girl felt her cheeks slightly get warm at the "compliment" but hid it with a hand. Lisanna saw it though… and she felt really jealous.

"Not really, oh well. Who cares what you think. But I don't see why I can't go with the others you told me to team up with. Weren't they supposed to be the ones guiding and watching over me? I mean; aren't I supposed to be with Gajeel, Juvia, Wendy, Kaizen and the three exceeds?" Lucy asked. Makarov only shook his head at her.

"That will be true, after your first mission. These three are one of the greatest teams in Fairy Tail… including Lisanna of course… they can guide you better than the others." Makarov tried convincing Lucy. He didn't tell her this earlier since he just thought of it a while ago, so it was only natural that she'd react this way. They were, after all, the closest people to her… and the one who hurt her the most.

"Well this sucks…" Lucy unceremoniously slumped back onto her chair. She hated this. This was so wrong. Master knew how she felt. She wanted to avoid them at all costs… but he had to do something as stupid as forcing her to join them.

"I know." Lisanna whispered, but they all heard her. Erza arched a scarlet eyebrow. Gray grunted, knowing how much of a bitch Lisanna could be when she wanted to. Natsu just ignored it. But it was weird though… he felt… he felt somewhat happy that the they were going to be with the new girl for her first mission.

"You don't want Kourin to join your team?" Makarov asked suspiciously. Lucy watched Lisanna cautiously. She's been getting weird vibes from Lisanna and she didn't know if it was good… or bad yet… it was slowly moving towards the latter though.

"I-it's not that… But why do Erza, Gray and Natsu have to go with her and I can't?" Lisanna asked. Makarov looked at her and chuckled. Erza smirked while Gray merely sneered. Natsu? He didn't get the question.

"Lisanna, my child… it's not because you are lacking, I want you to know that. But it's more on the matter of strict coordination and strength. I know all about Kourin's abilities and I believe that she can handle it with only three companions like Erza, Gray and Natsu… aside from that, you're magic and hers are quite different, which can be a huge let down during the mission." The guild master smiled at her warmly. Lisanna still pouted though.

"How are you so sure that she can coordinate with the others? How can you assure me that she won't drag them down?" She continued, annoying Lucy in the process. Erza also saw this and found it a tad bit irritating.

"Want me to show you?" Lucy asked nonchalantly, sneering at Lisanna. The girl's eyes widened and she unconsciously gripped Natsu's arm tighter. That look on Kourin-san's face was terrifying…

"Hey! Don't say that to Lisanna!" Natsu exclaimed. He didn't like the way they were treating each other, nor did he appreciated her silent threat to the takeover mage.

"What? She was asking for it." Lucy shrugged, folding her arms over her chest. Erza silently agreed with Kourin-san and found her quite amusing… just like the girl in her dreams… Shrugging it off, she continued to watch the ensuing fight with mirth in her eyes.

"Redfox-san… it would be better if you stop." Gray said, placing a hand on her arm. Lucy glanced at it and narrowed her eyes. Gray quickly jerked his hand back, not knowing what came over him. She just felt so approachable and comfortable that he unconsciously did that… He felt like he knew her and ever since he saw her smile… he was reminded of the girl he's always had dreams of.

"Fine… but let me tell you one thing, Lisanna was it?" Lucy asked, leaning forward. The said girl slowly nodded, something stirring in her stomach. "I. Don't. Like. You." Lucy said, emphasizing each word and then leaning back onto her chair.

Makarov only watched sadly. He hoped that she'd get along great with Lisanna but it seemed like the exact opposite. Maybe it was because when Lisanna returned to Earthland, Lucy was left in Edolas?

"So? What's the mission?" Gray asked, trying to slice through the thick tense atmosphere. Seriously, he didn't know why it seemed like the two despised each other.

"Ah, that… it's an SS ranked mission that nee-" "What!" All four shot up, Lucy just sitting there like it was no big deal. But inside, she was actually rejoicing. Finally! Something that would prove her true strength!

"You heard me. It's an SS ranked mission that needs a mage to slay the demon called Zagan(1)… it requires only one expert mage but I need you three to watch her closely to see and help her if she's in any great danger."

"Zagan? Isn't that the elder demon of Lullaby and Deliora?" Erza asked, glancing at Gray. The three strongest mages all know about his past and how he almost sacrificed his life just to encase it in ice… they didn't want him to get any bright ideas now too.

"Yes. It was created before them. I believe that its appearance has something to do with what happened 400 years ago." Makarov said, folding his arms over his chest.

"Wait a minute! Are you telling us that Kourin-san can do this all alone? I mean, Lullaby and Deliora were hard enough alone and I asked the help of Natsu and Gray and…" Erza paused for a moment, feeling as if she was missing someone. "But An elder demon?" Erza exclaimed, feeling something clutch at her heart. She was forgetting something… something crucial… And she was feeling slightly off about the issue of sending Kourin-san to slay the elder demon.

"That is why I asked the three of you to watch over her during the duration of the mission, help her if you must." Makarov answered, understanding where Erza was coming from. She didn't know who Kourin-san was; her abilities… and he knew that Erza's heart knew who Kourin was… she felt worry…

"The elder demon lives at the border between Desierto and Bellum(2). There will be a guide waiting for you at the Magnolia port this afternoon, at exactly 4:30 PM. He or She will accompany you during the course of the mission. You must keep him/her safe at all times. Again, watch over Kourin. But don't underestimate her." Were Makarov's final words before he turned from them and walked out of the room. Natsu, Gray, Lisanna and Erza all turned their heads to look at Lucy, who was playing with a small shuriken in her hand.

"What? It's not like this was my idea." Lucy said, looking through all of them. Lisanna frowned.

"But it seems like you like the idea." Lisanna narrowed her eyes at Lucy. The latter smirked and stood up.

"Well, I can't deny that truth…" She answered before proceeding to follow the master out of the room.

"Wait. We need to discuss matters." Erza stopped her, placing a hand on Lucy's shoulder. Lucy looked at Erza and contemplated from leaving or staying… she decided to choose the latter.

"Fine… I'd like some things to be clear. First; don't slow me down." She started.

"As if…" Lisanna muttered. Lucy heard this and stared at her.

"You," She pointed at the white haired girl. "You're not part of the mission; you have no say in this. Besides that, why are you even here?" Lucy asked, raising an eyebrow. Lisanna wavered.

"Lisanna… I think it's better if you go out first. Why don't you go tell Kaizen-kun about this mission?" Erza suggested. It was mean of her, but Kourin-san was right.

"O-okay…" Lisanna obliged, eyeing Lucy as she made her way out… but before that, she gave Natsu a small peck on the lips and then scurried out of the room. The fire dragonslayer sat there dazed and had a slight blush on his cheeks.

"So fire boy's got some 'thing' with that girl, huh…" Lucy stated, sneering at Natsu. Actually, she knew all about their relationship, but she was playing Kourin…

"Shut up." Natsu murmured, covering half of his face with his muffler. Gray raised both eyebrows… Erza smirked, while Lucy just stood there silent.

"So, that's the first. Second; do not interfere unless I die."

"What!" "No way!" Natsu and Gray said at the same time. They froze after they said that… Something came over them… but then, they remembered that the master instructed them to watch over her, so that might be the reason…

"Kourin-san, that's out of the option. We're here because we were ordered to watch over you, if we didn't do anything and you died, we can never forgive ourselves." Erza said, something clutching at her heart again.

"So? It's not like I'm going to die anyway." Lucy waved her statement off like it was nothing, but in reality… she felt kind of sad. If only they knew she was Lucy… but even if they did, would they still remember her? She had the album that told her that Natsu somehow knows Lucy Heartfilia… but what about the others?

"That's beside the point. What if you actually did? What will happen to Kaizen-kun? To Gajeel? How do you think they would feel if you died because we followed your second rule?" Erza continued. This time, Lucy's sadness grew. Erza was right, what about the others who found out she just got back… and then to lose her again?

"You win this time." Lucy narrowed her eyes at Erza, who just smirked at her. Gray and Natsu somehow felt relieved for no reason.

"Then the second will be this: Do not help me unless I ask you to."

"Agreed," Erza nodded her head; she looked over to Natsu and Gray and saw them have their thumbs up.

"Third: We travel by foot." Lucy said one more time. It's not that she was concerned for Natsu; it was because after the thing with the Portal… she just wasn't up for another ride… Lucy wasn't sure if she has motion sickness though, but just thinking about it made her nauseous.

"Yes! I love you!" Natsu exclaimed, jumping towards her. All of their eyes widened at that declaration, most especially Lucy. Natsu was oblivious as he hugged Lucy's torso.

"Get off me you weirdo!" Lucy yelled, trying to pry off the dragonslayer. Natsu blinked a few times, suddenly remembering something…

* * *

><p>"<em>Natsu! What are you doing in my apartment? Better yet, in my bed?" The blond busty chick yelled at him, waving her hands in the air frantically. <em>

"_I thought about visiting you, you sure got a nice place Luigi…" He smiled. _

"_It's Lucy you idiot! Get off my bed!" Lucy screamed, punching him on the face. _

"_Ow! You're such a weirdo Lucy!" He rubbed his abused cheek,_

* * *

><p>And then he stared at the female Redfox who was glaring at him. He suddenly let go, making Lucy stumble backwards because she was pushing herself off of him.<p>

"What was that for?" She hissed, managing to get her balance back. Natsu just stayed quiet, looking at her intently. Erza and Gray remained silent, interested at Natsu's sudden change.

"Luigi…" He said, staring at Lucy. Her eyes widened when he said that name. It was one of the few names he called her during their first time meeting. Was he finally remembering her?

"Wh-who the hell is Luigi?" She asked, trying to act unaffected.

"It's not Luigi… It's Lucy…" He clarified. Lucy's heart fluttered… she felt weird all of a sudden and she didn't know why. Erza and Gray felt something tugging at their hearts when they heard the name Lucy. Who was she? Why did it affect them?

"Who?" Lucy asked, heart and mind in a frenzy.

"The blond girl in the album… her apartment's at… Strawberry Street… Chocolate eyes… Big boobs…" Natsu muttered, but because of the silence in the office, all of them heard it. Lucy choked at the last part, whilst Gray and Erza blushed.

"What the hell are you talking about ash for brains?" Gray asked. He did remember Natsu showing them all that red album of his and then searching around Magnolia for that girl. She felt important, and someone he was close to. But it was wrong for him not to know her… if they were really close that is.

"Lucy… Lucy Heart… Lucy Heartfilia!" Natsu exclaimed, a full body image of the blond girl and her big warm smile popping into his mind.

"Lucy Heartfilia?" Erza asked. Lucy was sweating hard now. Were they finally going to remember her? Can she dispose of Kourin Redfox forever?

"Who the hell is Lucy Heartfilia?" Gray narrowed his eyes at Natsu.

"She's the girl in the album! She's the one we were looking for before! Lucy's the name of the girl I keep seeing in my dreams!" Natsu explained, ecstatic. Now that he knew her full name, he can search for her again, and maybe this time they could find her.

"What the hell are you guys talking about?" Lucy exclaimed, trying hard not to get her hopes up. It was hopeless anyway… Lucy Heartfilia was gone to this world…

"Natsu, I think it's best if you forget about this Lucy girl first and focus on our mission." Erza said sternly. She didn't like the idea but it was the right one. But somehow, she felt as if she were doing the wrong thing. After all, the three of them had dreams of the blond girl who Natsu called Lucy Heartfilia. She wanted to find out who that girl was and why she seemed so important.

"Yeah fire breath… besides, we've searched before. How are you sure we'd find her now?" Gray asked, folding his arms over his chest. Like Erza, he thought that it was wrong to be thinking about that matter when they had this thing to concentrate on. But; like Erza, he wanted to find out about the Lucy girl… who she was… why she appeared in their dreams… what importance she had in their lives…

"Come on! I'm finally getting closer to knowing who she-" Natsu stopped when Erza and Gray gave him stern looks. They had a short staring contest that lasted for a few minutes, before he gave up and hung his head low.

"Fine. I'll forget about her, for now." Natsu frowned, sulking. Erza smiled a little. She understood Natsu, but they had to focus. This was Zagan after all. Without focus, they were all sure to die in one swift blow.

"So, I'm getting the idea that this Lucy girl's someone very important?" Lucy asked, trying to seem oblivious to whatever they were talking about… Gray looked at her with sadness.

"She's a girl all three of us have dreams about. I guess she's somewhat important." He answered. Erza nodded her head. It was only right that Kourin-san be informed of what they talked about earlier, so that she wouldn't be out of place.

"What's she look like? Maybe I can help you find her…" Lucy suggested; her heart clenching. She was so damn stupid… but as stupid as she was, she never wanted to see that sad look on Gray's face. She's already seen it during the Deliora incident… no way would she want that to happen again.

"Nah… we should focus on your mission." Gray smiled at her. Lucy nodded and looked at Erza.

"Okay then. Third and final rule… Don't talk to me, unless I talk to you." Lucy stated.

"Sure. I can deal with that." "Agreed," "Whatever," The three mages said at the same time. Lucy smirked and nodded her head.

"My rules are done. Your turn," She turned to Erza, who stepped up.

"One: Follow Kourin-san's rules. Second: Follow my rules. Third: during the course, we will have different shifts when taking care of the guide. From midnight to Dawn, I'll be in charge. Dawn to Noon, Gray… Noon to Twilight, Natsu… and, if you don't mind Kourin-san… you'll be in charge of the guide from Twilight to midnight." Erza glanced at Lucy who was busy picking at her nails all the tension earlier, forgotten.

"Yeah, sure" She answered nonchalantly. Erza nodded her head and continued.

"Fourth: We will discuss the matter on luggage after we fetch the guide. But only carry as much as your own weight. Too much will slow you down, but too little might mean you demise. Fifth: On the matter of money. I expect the four of us to bring as much as 2,000,000 jewels during the mission. It will be for further expenses, emergency use, and transportation when needed."

"Wait… 2,000,000 Jewels? Where the hell do you think we can get that kind of money?" Gray asked.

"2,000,000 divided by four is 500,000. I have enough saved in my bank account. Natsu?" Erza looked to Natsu.

"I have some money stashed somewhere." He answered, still sulking.

"Kourin-san?"

"Got it…" She replied, still picking on her nails.

"Well then, Gray?"

"Fine. 500,000's no big deal…" Gray answered. But inside, he was worried. They were going to spend 500,000 each just to assist Kourin-san on her mission? What were they going to get afterwards? Wounds and bruises?

"Now that that's settled, sixth: No fighting during the mission. This is not only for you: Natsu and Gray, but Kourin-san as well." Erza said, looking at Lucy for the second time.

"Do I look like the type who likes fighting?" Lucy asked. The three other mages in the room only stared at her. She sighed. "Whatever…"

"Good. Last rule: We need to coordinate before the mission. I know your strengths: Natsu and Gray… but not you Kourin-san."

"Ah, well I'm a Spirit Mage…" Lucy informed them out of habit. She stopped what she was doing and her eyes widened when she realized what she just said. Lucy glanced at the three of them and saw that they seemed oblivious… when suddenly…

"SPIRIT MAGE!"Natsu exclaimed, shooting up from his seat. He remembered something in his dream, where the Lucy girl showed him how she made contracts with spirits…

"Yeah, so? I'm not the only spirit mage around here." Lucy answered, praying to the heavens that Natsu would just stay stupid for once.

"Oh… but Erza! Gray! Lucy's a spirit mage too!" Natsu told the other two mages in the room.

"Natsu… focus." Erza frowned at him. Gray shook his head. As much as they wanted to search for Lucy Heartfilia, and as much as they were happy that Natsu was remembering things… they had something much more important to do now.

"*sigh*" The fire dragonslayer sulked back in his chair. Lucy let out a sigh of relief, glad that Erza and Gray were too serious about this mission…

"Okay then… you're a spirit mage. What type?" Erza asked. There were many types of Spirit mages. But she only knew one… a Celestial Spirit mage… who resides in her dreams.

"Celestial." Lucy answered. Erza and Gray blinked a few times before shaking their head. No way. Kourin Redfox and Lucy Heartfilia (of their dreams) were two very different people.

"Okay, how many keys?"

"11 gold, 14 silver." Again, the two blinked.

"Seriously?"

"Yeah. So?"

"I mean, 11 gold! Are you freaking kidding me? You're the most powerful celestial mage!" Gray erupted, staring at Lucy with awe. Even he had to understand where master Makarov was coming from. Erza remained silent, admiring the girl before her. She might very well be on par with her… but not yet able to defeat her…

"Naw… I still got a lot to learn. Now, enough 'bout me. I don't know you guys' magic" Lucy tried to change the topic… which worked.

"Well, I'm an Ice Make Mage…" Gray told her, showing off his magic. The rest of the time, they spent showing their powers and coordinating with each other… Planning strategies and just getting to know each other. Natsu was the sour grape of the group, but he did manage a small laugh when Kourin-san hit Gray on the *bleep* twice.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Magnolia Port… 12:03 PM<strong>_

* * *

><p>A small but elegant boat approached the port of Magnolia. When it reached the docks, a cloaked figure leapt off the vessel and onto the wooden platform. The hood fell off, and it revealed a dashing young man with raven hair and striking dark blue eyes.<p>

"We'll be going now Sythe." The old man who drove the boat called the handsome young man.

"Bye Mister." Sythe answered with a velvety deep voice that resembled someone we know…

"Hmmm… I wonder where Gray-sama is…" Sythe whispered to himself, looking around the port.

"Well, I'm 4 hours early… I better look around for a while." He smiled and walked towards a small shop nearest to him.

* * *

><p><strong>Raven<strong>**: Oh dear~ I didn't mean for this chapter to end this way. I never did think of adding an OC here. It just came out of the blue. But wait… what's Sythe's relationship with Gray? Who is he? What is he doing there? What's gonna happen next?**

**Oh well, whatever… Here goes the numbers... **

**(1) ZAGAN: I got the name from a demon name generator in the internet... He is the demon king, a deceitful being who commands 33 legions.**

**(2) DESIERTO AND BELLUM: Try searching for the map of Earthland... you'll find that they're just beside each other. The border between them is where I decided to place Zagan and that's where Team Natsu's going. **

**I wonder if I did well in this chapter. It took me two weeks to actually finish this… That's because of the stupid Internet and the stupid computer… and school… and home… and the world… and Life… **

**Shucks… what the hell am I talking about… dear me, I'm going crazy! Someone take me to the mental hospital! **

**Anyway: what did you guys think? Comments? Corrections? Tips? Critiques? Please do leave a review!**


	12. 011: Sythe Fullbuster

**Raven****: Okay, so it's been 6 days since my last post… and I believe that's my fastest update… EVER… mwahahahaha! **

**Ahmmm… ignore my craziness... it's normal, you should get used to it. So~ right now, I'm dying of boredom. Literally dying of boredom, like… I'm staring at the computer screen having the growing urge to punch a hole through it...**

**What else can a writer as myself do? Write of course! And so here I am, writing nonsense while you're reading my nonsense and thinking: **_**what the hell am I freaking reading? **_**with a scowl on your face… Or maybe you're smiling, thinking that the author's an idiot? Which one is it?**

**Well whatever, is it a full moon right now? Cause I think the animal inside me is starting to resurface. When that time comes, you better run… and hide… because I like eating people… (mwahahaha!) **

**And so, before I start transforming and losing the ability to think straight… I present to you chapter 11 of FMN!**

**Oh, and FMN means Forget Me Not… for those who didn't get it. **

**Plus, I like the word "chuckle"… it's less girly than "giggle" and has a lower form than that of "laugh"… I plan on using that more and more and more… I just don't want to write: **_**Natsu giggled… **_**what the hell? Or maybe: **_**and then Erza giggled at their childishness… **_**now that's just out of place. **

**What else? Oh right! 3… 2… 1… OH MY GOD! OH! MY! FREAKING! GOD! Is what I'm seeing in the review count totally true? I mean… 366 reviews? Are you serious? Shit. I never expected to have at least 200… but 300! Wee~ thanks so, so much! I'm gonna do my best from now on… PROMISE!**

* * *

><p><strong>CHAPTER ELEVEN: <strong>Lisanna Vs Kourin

(**not really…**)

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV… 12:03 PM<strong>

Lucy and the others left the office when lunch came and spread out into different directions. Erza went to her designated table and ordered a fresh batch of strawberry cake. Gray searched around the guild for Juvia. Natsu went around looking for Lisanna, while Lucy spotted Edo-Natsu and walked over to him.

"Hey Kai," She smiled at him as she sat down. He was slumped over the bar as if he was depressed. When he saw her, he instantly sat up and beamed at her.

"Rin! You're back!" He grinned, eyes filled with alertness for the celestial mage. Lucy smirked and patted his head. He acted so much like a dog…

"Of course I am, now where's the food I asked you to reserve for me?" She asked, sitting on the bar stool beside him. Edo-Natsu smiled and glanced around for Mirajane. He spotted her serving Natsu and Lisanna some food and tried to get her attention.

"Hey Mira!" He yelled, raising an arm. The person called looked up and smiled when she saw who was calling her. She said something to Natsu and Lisanna before walking to them.

"Yes Kaizen-kun?" She asked the usual glass and cloth in both her hands.

"Where's the food I ordered earlier?" Edo-Natsu asked with round and excited eyes. Mira giggled and reached underneath the counter, taking out two platters of food.

"Here you go. Enjoy~" Mirajane grinned at them cheekily before returning to Lisanna and Natsu who were talking.

"Thanks!" Edo-Natsu called, before turning to Lucy. His smile fell when he saw her devouring the food in no time.

"Rin!" He groaned but smiled anyway. She was just too cute to be mad at, besides, she hadn't eaten breakfast since this morning so it was only natural for her to eat this way… but then again, she always ate this way.

"Phwash?" She asked, a few pieces of food flying to Edo-Natsu's face. Both of them blinked three times before falling into a fit of laughter.

"Fuwahaha!" Lucy guffawed, slamming her hand on the counter. Edo-Natsu chuckled alongside her, wiping off the food from his face. Really, this girl could be so… manly? He was sure the Earhtland Elfman would agree with his statement…

"Anyway, I heard from Lisanna-san that you're going on a mission with the Erza, Natsu and Gray?" Edo-Natsu asked, calming down. Lucy instantly stopped laughing and stared at the food in front of her.

"Yeah…" She whispered, poking at the meat on her plate.

"Good luck." He smiled at her, never minding to ask questions. He knew that Lucy would tell him when she wanted to; he didn't have to ask her. Lucy glanced up at him and smiled back.

"Thanks…" She said, reaching out to give him a hug. Edo-Natsu obliged and they stayed like that for a while before someone tapped Lucy on the shoulder. She turned around and raised her eyebrows when she saw Lisanna looking at her.

"I wanna talk to you." Lisanna said determination in her voice. Lucy stared at her for a moment before letting go of Edo-Natsu and standing up.

"Sure, I'll be back for a sec Kai." She smiled at him before following Lisanna outside the guild. At that moment, Natsu stepped up beside Edo-Natsu.

"I wonder what they're going to talk about." He muttered, glancing at his counterpart.

"Dunno." Edo-Natsu replied, watching Lucy walking away.

"So… you're her boyfriend huh…" Natsu wondered aloud. Edo-Natsu stared at him for a while before nodding.

"Yeah, why?"

"Nothing…" Natsu answered, staring at Lucy's retreating form. Edo-Natsu caught on this and smiled sadly to himself…

* * *

><p><strong>Outside the guild…<strong>

* * *

><p>"You wanted to talk to me?" Lucy asked, folding her arms over her chest and leaning onto the guild's outer wall. Lisanna couldn't help but admire the woman's beauty.<p>

"Yes. I wanted to clarify some things with you." The take-over mage said. Lucy raised her eyebrows and waited patiently.

"First. Team Natsu will never have you as a member." Lisanna narrowed her eyes at Lucy, who just blinked twice and then laughed.

"What's so funny?" Lisanna asked irritated. She didn't expect that reaction from the girl, much less a smile. She wanted Kourin-san to seem deflated… not… this…

"You're feeling inferior, aren't you?" Lucy asked. It was obvious. The way Lisanna always tried to make her look bad, the way she critiqued her earlier this morning, how she doubted Lucy could keep up with the others… and now, the confrontation.

"Wh-what? No!" Lisanna denied, blushing… when in fact, Kourin-san was spot on. She did feel inferior and she was afraid that Kourin-san was going to replace her.

"You are… you're not sure of yourself. You don't trust your friends." Lucy leaned forward, eyeing Lisanna who was cowering now.

"I trust them! You don't know anything! Stop talking as if you know me better than I know myself!" Lisanna exclaimed, angered. She suddenly transformed into her half bird-half human hybrid and proceeded to attack Lucy.

"Tsk… how childish." Lucy shook her head, dodging the attack. She leaped off the ground and landed onto the Fairy Tail sign atop the gate. Everyone inside the guild heard the crash and rushed outside, finding Lisanna transformed into her bird form.

"What's going on?" Someone yelled. Lisanna ignored them and narrowed her eyes at Kourin-san. She was going to prove to master Makarov that she was stronger than Kourin-san. That he didn't have to send someone else… that she was better.

"Get down here!" She exclaimed, turning herself into a small bird and flying towards Lucy. The guild member's saw Kourin seated on the Fairy Tail sign like she did it every day, and were worried that she'd fall off. But hey, she did defeat Natsu… Lisanna was nothing to her. At that moment, Makarov, Erza, Gray and Natsu cut through the crowd and watched the fight with the others.

It was a rule in Fairy Tail that when someone issued a challenge, no one should interrupt unless the duelers were finished. Makarov only hoped that Lucy would go easy on Lisanna.

Lucy did a double back flip before landing on her feet on the ground and unconsciously unsheathed her sword. She was getting a little irritated at Lisanna, plus, she was still hungry. She wanted to return to Edo-Natsu and finish her food.

"Hey, stop this." Lucy said, resting the sword's blade on her shoulder. Lisanna jumped onto the sign where Lucy was at earlier and glared at the new member. She was fast… she almost didn't see her.

"Only if you defeat me!" Lisanna hissed, diving off the sign and aiming for Lucy. The latter female just stood there like she wasn't going to be attacked and sheathed her sword. It'd be better if she fought the take-over mage with fists… maybe then, the white haired girl would come to her senses. Didn't she know that she defeated Natsu? What does she have against her now?

Erza and Gray exchanged knowing glances. It was obvious by the way Lisanna was talking… she was jealous of Kourin-san, but they couldn't blame her. The girl was simply amazing.

Lucy stretched out her hand at the last minute and grabbed Lisanna's fists with her right. She then swung the girl around and threw her towards the guild. Lisanna crash landed onto one of the picnic tables outside, screaming in pain as her body hit the ground.

The other member's pitied Lisanna, but it was obviously her fault. Kourin-san tried to stop the fight a while ago, but she didn't listen. Lucy then walked up to Lisanna and towered over her. Erza shook her head in disappointment at her team mate. Gray just shrugged, wondering why the hell Natsu liked the girl.

"Enough." She said arms folded over her chest. She was expecting Lisanna to give up, but then she felt her feet getting swept off the ground. It seems as if the take-over mage had some spunk left in her.

Before Lucy landed on the ground, she placed her hands out in front of her and pushed herself off the stone floor.

"I said enough." Lucy narrowed her eyes at Lisanna who was limping. It seems as if she hit the table, leg first.

"No way." Lisanna answered, her breathing ragged. Lucy rolled her eyes and made her stance. She wasn't going to fight with her magic. If she did, she might kill the girl.

"Fight me with your magic." Lisanna hissed.

"Nah…" Lucy said nonchalantly, making Lisanna more irritated.

"I said fight me with your magic!" Lisanna exclaimed, rushing forward with her body glowing white. Lucy stood there unmoving, her left arm stretched out and the right one tucked under her arm. She was in the tiger stance.

When the glowing stopped, Lisanna transformed into a large deer and had her antlers pointed towards Lucy. The celestial mage jumped off the ground just like before, but this time, she grabbed Lisanna's antlers. She pulled with all her might and slammed the animal onto the ground, making a large crater from the strong impact.

Lisanna screamed louder than before and clutched at her sides… she felt pain all over her body, greater pain than she's ever felt before… and Kourin-san wasn't even using her magic.

"See. I told you… you should've stopped when I said so." Lucy sighed, jumping down the crater and stopping right beside Lisanna.

"Lisanna!" Natsu yelled as he skidded down the slope of the crater and jumped right beside the take-over mage. Erza and Gray wanted to follow but Makarov held them back, wanting to discuss some things inside the guild.

"Lisanna! Are you okay?" Natsu asked worriedly. The take-over mage only managed a weak smile before wincing in pain. Lucy only watched in sadness at their interaction. She did miss those times when it was her Natsu was worried about… but of course, that was in the past… And then, Natsu looked at her.

"You should take her to the infirmary. She has a broken leg." Lucy informed him. At that, Natsu's eyes widened and he scooped Lisanna, who groaned in pain, in his arms. He took one last glance at her before propelling himself up and running towards the guild. Lucy shook her head. She might as well fix the damage she did on the ground.

Doing the same seal she did when she made the artificial cave during that time with Gajeel, she made the earth rise and fill the crater she created.

"Whoa~" Everyone who was watching gasped, amazed as earth filled in the huge gap on the ground. Lucy merely sighed and shook her head. At that moment, Edo-Natsu appeared from behind the crowd and stood beside her.

"You okay?" He asked, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. Lucy looked at him and smiled. At least there was someone who cared…

"Yeah… just… hungry." Lucy grinned cheekily at him. They both ended up laughing and hugging each other fondly, leaning from side to side. The others watched them with mirth in their eyes, some with jealousy. The two seemed like a perfect couple… if only they knew how broken Lucy and Edo-Natsu felt inside.

* * *

><p><strong>2:34 PM<strong>

* * *

><p>After finishing her food and apologizing to Lisanna (much to her disgust), Lucy and Edo-Natsu wandered all around Magnolia, searching for a place to stay. At least they could do it together before she left; maybe before then they'd be able to find an apartment suitable for two.<p>

"So, what was up with your fight with Lisanna-san?" Edo-Natsu asked, very curious. He knew Lucy didn't fight until she needed to… or when she was pissed off. He was guessing it was the latter though.

"She feels inferior to me… I don't blame her, I'm just so awesome" Lucy smirked, looking through a window of an apartment for rent.

"Yeah… awesome…" Edo-Natsu said sarcastically. Lucy shot him a dirty look before cracking up and walking towards the sign near the window.

**Apartment for Rent  
>135,000 Jewels a Month<br>For more Information, contact:  
>Mrs. Hillsborough<br>Magnolia Public Elementary School  
>Room 103<strong>

Lucy and Edo-Natsu glanced at each other and grinned. Maybe this was the one… they'd just have to go to Magnolia Public Elementary School.

So off they went towards the school… on their way there, they bumped into a group of girls who actually asked for their pictures taken.

"Please Nee-san? Can we take your pictures?" One of the girls pleaded. The two mages glanced at each other and grinned.

"Sure." Lucy smiled. She grabbed Edo-Natsu beside her and gave a respectable looking smile. Edo-Natsu on the other hand was grinning widely with his eyes twitching because underneath his cloak (which Lucy returned earlier), the celestial mage was tickling him.

"Thanks a bunch!" They squealed, looking at the photo.

"You're welcome." Edo-Natsu thanked them, seeing as Lucy was already too busy looking at the pictures with the girls.

"Are you guys in a relationship?" The bold girl asked. Lucy looked at Edo-Natsu and smiled.

"Yeah… we're getting married soon…" She answered, shocking Edo-Natsu. He almost choked on his spit, which was what Lucy expected.

"Ahahahahaa! Kidding! You should've seen your face Kai!" Lucy hollered, clutching her stomach. Edo-Natsu glared at her and grabbed her waist.

"Revenge!" He exclaimed, tickling her sides. The two of them ended up in a tickle fight right in front of the bunch of girls.

"Aww… they're so sweet. I'm sure they're in a relationship." One of the girls cooed, taking pictures of the two older mages in front of them.

"Yeah. They look perfect for each other." Another agreed. This time around, Lucy broke free of Edo-Natsu's grasp and was trying to run away from him.

"Sorry guys! Gotta run! Nice meeting you!" Lucy yelled over her shoulder as she leapt onto one of the buildings.

"See ya!" Edo-Natsu followed after her. They continued on like that until they reached the school where the Mrs. Hillsborough said she was at. Lucy completely forgot about their tickle fight as she searched the grounds for room 103.

"Found it…" She called for Edo-Natsu who was looking through the other doors. Lucy peeked inside the window and saw a woman in her late thirties teaching an elementary class.

"Should we knock?" Lucy wondered, seeing as how they seemed busy with their class. But then she saw a little boy pointing at her and so she decided to knock anyway.

After a few seconds, Mrs. Hillsborough opened the door, only to find two gorgeous looking people smiling at her.

"Hi. I'm sorry for disturbing your class… but we're here to inquire about the apartment for rent?" Lucy asked. She noticed the students staring at her with wide eyes, and a few of the girls blushing when they glanced at Edo-Natsu.

"Oh! Dear me, uhmmm…" The woman said, turning to her students. "I'll be out for a while, please read about the history of Fiore. Class President, you're in charge." She announced, turning back to Lucy and Edo-Natsu.

"Please follow me.'' Mrs. Hillsborough said, leading them towards a small area which seemed like a mini-park.

"You already know this, but I'll introduce myself. I'm Mrs. Winter Hillsborough… I own the apartment for rent at Chocolate Street…" The woman smiled at the couple. Lucy and Edo-Natsu smiled back before introducing themselves as well.

"I'm Kourin Redfox, I'm a mage of Fairy Tail." She said, offering a hand. Mrs. Winter stared at her before smiling wider.

"A mage, I see… then I expect you are one too?" She asked, turning to Edo-Natsu.

"Yes, but I'm not yet a member of Fairy Tail. I'm Kaizen Haven-Farrow." He answered. The woman nodded her head.

"I see… I see… So when would you like to check on the apartment?" She asked.

"Today would be great. I'm leaving for a mission soon, and I'd like to have a place to return to afterwards…" Lucy said.

"Oh, then will it be alright with you if I just give you the keys? I have a class and I won't be free until 5." Mrs. Winter informed them. The two mages looked at each other before grinning.

"Sure!"

* * *

><p><strong>3:19 PM<strong>

* * *

><p>Lucy and Edo-Natsu were now inside Mrs. Hillsborough's apartment for rent. It was a large 2 storey with three rooms (two upstairs with balconies, and one downstairs), two bathrooms (one downstairs, and the other upstairs), a living room, kitchen, and a flat roof. It seemed perfect and with the two of them, the rent would be no problem.<p>

"You like it?" Edo-Natsu asked Lucy as he checked on the plumbing system on the second floor bathroom. Lucy smiled as she watched the view from the balcony.

"I love it. It's perfect!"Lucy grinned. Now she wouldn't have a problem searching for a house. All they needed were the furniture and appliances, which Edo-Natsu can handle himself.

"Then we'll be taking it then…" he smiled, satisfied with the bathrooms and the other things that came with the apartment.

"Alright! We've got ourselves a home!" Lucy exclaimed tackling Edo-Natsu. They both ended up on the floor laughing.

"So, all we have to do now is to shop for furniture and appliances…" Edo-Natsu said, sitting up. Lucy followed suit. Now it seemed as though she was straddling him, but the two didn't mind it… They were somehow used to situations like those.

"Which you will be doing while I'm gone… Don't worry, I'll tell the master so that he could get Mira to help you out." She smiled at him.

"Okay then. We should go tell Mrs. Hillsborough that we're going to be taking the apartment." He said, as he stood up. He offered his hand to Lucy, which she accepted, and pulled her up.

"Yeah. Let's go." Lucy lugged him out of the house and back to the school where they saw Mrs. Winter teaching again. The teacher saw them and asked them to come inside.

"The kids are having a short quiz now… how did you find the house?" She asked.

"It was perfect. We're taking it." Lucy grinned. Edo-Natsu nodded and handed the woman the keys.

"No, no… since you're taking the house, you should keep the key. I have a spare at home. So, I'll need you to sign a contract." Mrs. Hillsborough said taking out a bunch of paper's out of her desk.

"Okay…"

* * *

><p><strong>3:54 PM<strong>

* * *

><p>"Okay, see you soon!" The teacher waved goodbye to her new tenants. They just finished signing the contract and agreeing on some terms and conditions.<p>

"Thanks Mrs. Winter!" Lucy and Edo-Natsu waved back as they walked away from the school. Now, they officially owned the apartment…

"So, where do we go next?" Edo-Natsu asked.

"What's the time?"

"It's already 4:00 PM, why?"

"I need to get to the Port by 4:30! Oh gawd, I think I'm gonna be late!" Lucy exclaimed, breaking into a jog. The port was kilometers away, and she only had 30 minutes left!

"Well then we better get running then!" Edo-Natsu grinned. Lucy grinned back and offered her hand. He took it and the both of them made a mad dash towards the docks.

* * *

><p><strong>Magnolia Port…<strong>

* * *

><p>Erza stood there impatiently, looking around for any indication of the coming of the guide. They've been there since <strong>4:23.<strong> Gray was right beside her, looking out for the person who'll lead them to the border. Natsu hasn't appeared, but he was excused… after all, he had to watch over Lisanna. Kourin-san on the other hand… she still had 7 minutes to spare… so she wasn't in trouble… yet.

"What do you think our guide's going to be?" Gray asked.

"A human" Erza answered coolly. Gray sweat dropped. That was not what he meant.

"I meant…" He clarified. "I know what you meant. Now where the hell are they?" Erza interrupted him impatiently. She was tapping her foot on the ground, her hands placed authoritatively on her hips. Her eyes were focused on the road that led to the port. Kourin-san had only 1 minute left.

Gray remained silent. He knew Erza too much to know that she was very strict when it came to attendance. No matter who it was, how strong they were, she would forever hold her rule: IF YOU SO EVER COME AFTER 3 SECONDS OF THE DESIGNATED TIME, I WILL PUNISH YOU… SEVERELY…

"I swear… even if Kourin-san was-"

"If I was?" They both heard someone say from behind them. Erza and Gray turned their heads at the same time and saw who they were talking about seated beside Kaizen-kun at the roof of the small shop built on the edge of the dock.

"Oh, you're here. Good."Erza nodded approvingly, forgetting the list of punishments she ran through in her mind.

"Uhuh… So, where's the guide?" Lucy asked, leaping off the roof with Kaizen.

"I haven't seen him or her yet." Erza informed her. Gray nodded to say that he didn't either.

"Oh…" She said, sitting at the pile of lumber lying by the pier. Edo-Natsu followed and stood just behind her.

"Before he/she gets here though, I'd like to get some things straight." Erza announced, facing the pair.

"What now? I thought you were done _getting things straight _this morning?" Lucy asked, making herself sound a little irritated. She still needed to stay Kourin, and Kourin was an impatient little bitch. Gray stared at her unbelievingly. _No way… _He thought. _She did __**not **__just say that… _

Erza narrowed her eyes at Kourin but smirked. "No. I wasn't." She just answered, ignoring the wide-eyed stare Gray had on her for ignoring Kourin-san's rudeness. Hey, she liked the girl.

Lucy shrugged and placed her chin in her hand. "Shoot."

"First. Strictly follow the guide's rules or instructions. Second. Always listen to him/her. Third. Always keep a close watch on the guide. Fourth. Befriend the guide. Fifth and the last. Whosoever threatens the guide, will be punished. Clear?" Erza said. Gray nodded vigorously, not really caring about the first four rules… but when he heard the word **punish **coming from Erza… let's just say he'd rather pass on disobeying that order.

Lucy merely shrugged, but shivered at the thought of being punished by Erza. She's already seen how much of a _punishment _one really receives from Erza through Gray and Natsu… and she, no matter how strong she's gotten for the past months, would rather not have that punishment applied on her.

"So, where the hell is she?" Lucy wondered aloud in an irritated tone.

"I'm a he actually…" A deep timbre mentioned from behind her. Both she and Edo-Natsu looked behind them at the same time and saw a guy a little shorter than Gray. He had the same raven hair and had the same dark icy eyes as the ice make mage of Fairy Tail.

"So you're going to be our guide?" Erza asked. Gray was too busy picking something from the ground to check out the guide. Lucy watched as the guy nodded his head and smiled. _He's quite good looking. _She thought. Edo-Natsu just remained seated beside Lucy in a somewhat protective manner, which went unnoticed by the girl.

"Yes. I am Sythe Fullbuster; a wandering mage." He introduced himself. At this answer, Gray's head snapped up and he screamed in terror when he saw the guide.

"You!" He screeched like a girl, his left hand and foot rose as if he were recoiling from a disgusting thing.

"Gray-aniki(1)" Sythe exclaimed ecstatic. Everyone else watched silently as the scene unfolded before their eyes.

"Sythe! You… how… IMPOSSIBLE!" Gray incoherently yelled back, still in the recoiling position. Erza quirked an eyebrow.

"Do you know him Gray?" She asked.

"Uhhh…" The ice alchemist's mind was in a buzz… Should he tell them? They'll find out anyway.

"He's my younger brother…" Gray grumbled a frustrated hand on his forehead.

"Eh!" Everyone, except Edo-Natsu and Lucy (who covered her mouth) cried out. At this, Sythe just beamed at them and waved.

* * *

><p><strong>Raven: <strong>**Sooo~ was it any good? I think it was… But my opinion is biased so forget what I just said…**

**Anyway, a lot of people PM'ed me and asked if I was going to add in the Tenroujima Arc… or why I didn't put it in… I've already gotten that part cleared up, so you guys don't have to worry. You just have to wait though… TEEHEE**

**Another thing… The Lisanna and Lucy fight you guys were waiting for wasn't that eventful, was it? Yeah, I just thought that Lisanna's type of take-over magic was nothing to Lucy's upgraded Celestial Magic and her new strength so I couldn't make it "EPIC".**

**Now, one of my friends told me to add in some "Sneak Peek's" for the upcoming chapters, so I agreed. Here it is!**

"_**Lucy, Lucy, Lucy…" Natsu mumbled to himself as he climbed the sola tree where he built the tree house. He was now sure she was the person he built it with. That she was the girl he had brought to Fairy Tail. He just wasn't sure how he managed to forget about her when she was so important… or why everyone except Gray and Erza didn't seem to know her either. **_

_**But one thing was for certain, he'd find her… he knew she might never forgive him for forgetting about her, but he'd try to make amends… even if he didn't know who she was exactly. He would find her, apologize as much as he could… and get back that smile he's only gotten to see in his dreams…**_

**So what do you guys think of the sneak peek? Was it nice? **

**Oh well, THANKS FOR READING! Plus, a REVIEW would be a****wesome! :D**

**NUMBER CORNER: **

**(1) Aniki: **It is the Japanese term for older brother, or a superior...


	13. 012: Everything Starts Here

**Raven: Hey guys! Sorry for the unforgivably long time of me NOT updating this story... was side tracked... and am confused... and whatever, you guys don't care about that.  
><strong>

**I'm not gonna delay it any longer, so here's the next update!**

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><p><strong>Chapter Twelve<strong>

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><p>"<strong>He's my younger brother…"<strong> Gray grumbled; a frustrated hand on his forehead.

"Eh!" Everyone, except Edo-Natsu and Lucy (who suppressed her reaction because she was supposed to be Kourin) cried out. At this, Sythe just beamed at them and waved.

Erza stood there frozen for a while before she cleared her throat and recomposed herself. Lucy was quiet all the while, but inside her mind, she was in hysterics. Edo-Natsu still remained quiet, but he wondered how that was possible. His Edolas Gray didn't have any brothers… or did he?

"So… Sythe, are you really Gray's younger brother?" Erza clarified.

"Yeah… But I think Gray-aniki thought I was dead…" He muttered, sadness flowing into those dark icy eyes. Gray looked at Sythe for a moment before sighing.

"Well, you were thrown across a mountain… what'd you expect me to think?" Gray sneered, placing a hand on Sythe's shoulder. The younger boy looked up at Gray for a second before a huge smile broke loose across his face.

"That I'd miraculously land in a village and be treated by the villager's?" Sythe answered, placing his own hand on Gray's shoulder.

"Cheeky little brat…" The older ice mage commented.

"Egotistical bastard…" The younger boy retorted. They stared at each other for a moment before bursting into a fit of laughter.

"You ARE Sythe!" Gray grinned, patting him on both his shoulders. The younger Fullbuster grinned back and they did the "guy-hug".

"Of course I am!" They continued laughing for a while before Lucy cut in rudely.

"Hello~ Person who wants to get things over with as quickly as possible sitting here…" She interrupted with irritation in her voice. Just her voice though. In truth, she was very happy for Gray. He's not alone anymore… he's got family…

Sythe turned his head to glance at her and for a moment he found himself looking at a golden haired girl with warm hazel eyes narrowing those eyes at him. But then the image disappeared and it was replaced with a sinister looking gorgeous girl with shining ebony hair and intense crimson eyes.

"Whoa…" He muttered, shaking his head. He felt like the girl was hiding something deep and painful. But maybe it was just a feeling... he did like those crimson eyes though… they were mesmerizing.

"Whoa your face… come on, you can catch up later. You got to tell us the details and whatnot." Lucy said rudely. Edo-Natsu shook his head, truly amazed at how good Lucy's acting skills were. Sythe just blinked at her before smirking.

"Hmmm… may I know your name?" He asked. Lucy stared at him lazily.

"Bernie…" She answered nonchalantly. Everyone else except Sythe sweat dropped at the absurd name, Gray and Edo-Natsu stifling their laughter.

"Nice to meet you Bernie…" Sythe smiled at her, offering his hand. She gawked at him. Lucy could not believe this guy. He actually thought her name was Bernie? Was he an idiot? Who would think that a gorgeous girl like herself (smug smirk) would have a name so idiotic as Bernie?

"Nice to meet you too, idiot…" Lucy mumbled the last part. Sythe just sneered before shrugging and walking back to Gray.

"So~ shall, we discuss about your mission?" He suggested, folding his arms over his chest. Everyone nodded.

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><p><strong>Natsu's side…<strong>

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><p>Natsu sat there beside his unconscious girl friend. Mirajane and Elfman were inside the room too, taking care of her with him, but his mind wasn't with his body. He was thinking deeply about Gajeel's cousin. She was too damn strong and she somehow reminded him of Lucy. He didn't know why, but he felt like they were connected.<p>

But it seemed impossible though. The Redfox girl was scary as hell, too rude, a smart ass, bitchy and an all around delinquent… whilst Lucy was a beautiful, kind, passionate, strong willed, and an awesome person.

He glanced at Lisanna and decided that she wouldn't be awake after a while so he walked out of the room. Mira gave him a worried look but he just smiled at her soothingly and then jogged out into the streets of Magnolia. Natsu knew a place he could go to where he could think straight.

He slowed down when he reached the shopping area and decided to look around for some stuff as he passed. He saw a jewelry shop and couldn't help but look into the window. There, he found something that caught his attention. It was a silver necklace having a key pendant with a red dragon wrapping itself around the keys handle. It had ruby eyes that glinted in every angle.

"Mmmm…" He hummed, having the growing urge to buy it for no reason. But then an image of Lucy went through his mind and he remembered that she was a celestial mage… maybe she'd forgive him if he ever found her and gave her that necklace. Nodding to himself and his great idea, he went inside and bought it with no care as to how much it was (150,000 Jewels).

After that, he bounded off around a corner, ran through a thick patch of bushes and jogged slowly towards the memorable tree…

"Lucy, Lucy, Lucy…" Natsu mumbled to himself as he climbed the sola tree where he built the tree house. He was now sure she was the person he built it with. That she was the girl he had brought to Fairy Tail. He just wasn't sure how he managed to forget about her when she was so important… or why everyone except Gray and Erza didn't seem to know her either.

But one thing was for certain, he'd find her… he knew she might never forgive him for forgetting about her, but he'd try to make amends, starting with the necklace he just bought… even if he didn't know who she was exactly. He would find her, apologize as much as he could… and get back that smile he's only gotten to see in his dreams…

Upon entering the window to the bedroom of the tree house, he immediately walked towards the drawer where he always kept the album but then he remembered that Gajeel's cousin took it. His teeth clenched and a weird feeling ate at his gut.

The only thing he had of Lucy's was that album, and he didn't even have it. It was easily stolen and he couldn't even fight well enough to get it back. He was sure Lucy would be disappointed in him because of this… and knowing that got his insides in a knot.

"I wonder where you are…" He muttered to himself as he fell back onto the hammock he and Happy slept at.

"How are you?" He asked nobody. In his mind's eye, he could see Lucy's bright and warm smile. He could hear her laughter… he could smell her lovely flowery homey smell… feel her soft porcelain skin. He sounded like an obsessed idiot, but he didn't mind… as long as it was her, it was fine.

"Are you okay wherever you are?" he asked again, imagining her answering his questions. His heart remembered how her voice sounded… it was a smooth and beautiful soprano. It ached to hear it right then and there… searching for that soft voice… his heart was in tremor.

"Are you mad at me? If you are, I'm sorry…" He mumbled, sadness creeping at his eyes. He turned to his left, folded his arms beneath his head, and sighed. "I didn't want to forget you intentionally… I don't know how it happened, how you could've disappeared from my mind… but I swear I didn't want that… You feel like someone I wouldn't want to lose, someone very important. Someone I would never forget about… You feel like someone greater than Lisanna… and even Igneel" He explained to the Lucy in his mind.

She was looking at him; her head tipped to the side as if she was confused. The tips of his mouth rose slightly… she totally didn't understand what he was saying. Of course, it was only natural… she wasn't the real Lucy. He sighed heavily before shutting his eyes tightly and forcing himself to sleep.

* * *

><p><strong>Lucy's side<strong>

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><p>Lucy watched silently as Gray and his brother reconciled. They just finished discussing about the mission earlier, and she was happy that they weren't taking any trains or transportation on the way to the border. She just couldn't stomach the ride… just the thought of riding transportation for 5 long weeks made her stomach churn.<p>

In truth, she was deeply happy for him. Ever since she heard about how he lost his family because of Deliora, and how his mother figure sacrificed herself for him because of the same demon… Lucy felt glad that he found his brother… or to put it in the right way, how his brother found him.

But she couldn't openly say these thoughts. She was Kourin Redfox after all: the delinquent bitch who can kick other people's ass anytime she wanted. She smirked at this… oh how fun it was to play someone so very different from her original self.

"What's with that smirk?" Lucy heard Edo-Natsu ask her. She turned her head to face him and saw those sharp edged dark green eyes. She grinned at how gorgeous he looked; it was her doing after all.

"Nothing…" Lucy answered. He shrugged and continued to walk beside her throughout the walk back to Fairy Tail. Erza told them that they'd have to introduce Sythe to the master and since it seemed as if the two brothers couldn't be separated, they'd have another addition to the guild soon.

"Hey Kai…" She mumbled… he looked at her with raised eyebrows.

"Mmmm?"

"Are we gonna share one room inside the apartment?" She asked. That wasn't a question actually since she already knew the answer. She was just bored.

"Wh-what?" He asked flustered as he blushed. Lucy grinned. She expected that reaction from him… he was too predictably cute.

"Yeah, we are…" She answered for him. This got his face turning 5 shades darker.

"Wh-what?" He asked again. She watched him as he stared at her and then shook his head. What was he thinking?

"You heard me… _boyfriend…_" Lucy giggled when he froze in his spot and stared at her horrifyingly, his face even getting 10 shades darker by the second (if that was even possible). Thinking about it, she always did like his responses whenever she teased him.

"Rin!" He whined, getting back from his dazed state. She laughed at him and poked his side.

"What were you thinking?" She poked his side again. He didn't answer but blushed harder instead.

"Oh my! Kai's a pervert!" Lucy teased him. His eyes ended up growing wider and he suddenly launched himself at her.

"Am not! Shut up Rin!" He exclaimed, flushed.

"Kai is such a pervert! Pervert! Pervert!" Lucy chanted running away from him. Erza watched as the two were running around them in circles, laughing all the while. It was refreshing and she found herself smiling at them. Gray caught this when he glanced at Erza and turned his attention to the other two mages with them.

"I've never seen Kourin-san like that inside the guild." He mumbled to himself, actually liking the smile on the ebony haired girl's face. Sythe followed where his brother was watching and swore he saw the blond beauty instead of the delinquent princess.

"I guess Kaizen-kun is the only one who can get her to smile that freely." Erza answered. All of them stopped to watch as the two unknowing mages began an all out poke war between themselves.

"Guess so…" Gray nodded, unconsciously grinning when he heard the Redfox mage laugh. It was beautiful. Sythe was entranced… Erza's smile grew.

"Hey, haven't you noticed how everyone stopped walking?" Lucy asked Edo-Natsu. Both of them instantly stopped and blushed when they saw the all-knowing smiles on the other three's faces.

"What are you smiling at?" Lucy asked rashly, covering up her un-Kourin like actions earlier. Everyone just shook their heads and turned around to walk back to the guild in silence. Edo-Natsu sighed and turned to glare at Lucy.

"You can be so mean and yet adorable sometimes, you know that?" Lucy gawked at him but then sneered.

"Why thank you… my dearest boyfriend, Kai…" She smirked at him again. She ended up laughing and linking her arm with his when he blushed.

"Come on… let's catch up to them…" Lucy grinned, tugging him forward.

* * *

><p><strong>Fairy Tail Guild<strong>

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><p>Makarov watched his children fondly at his usual seat on the bar counter. They were as cheerful and destructive as always. But he didn't mind though, it was better in fact. He hated it when they were sad or even a little less cheerful than now.<p>

Lisanna was all better too. Wendy had healed her up to the extent that she felt like she died and lived again. So now the young take-over mage was covering for her older sister who went off to fetch Freed from the Magnolia station since he just returned from an unknown agenda he had at Clover Town.

"Here you go Juvia~" Lisanna smiled at the sulking water mage as she placed the ordered beer on her table. She was sad that her Gray-sama had not yet returned from his meeting with the guide and she was not in a good mood.

"Why is Gray-sama not here yet? What is taking him long?" She asked Lisanna in a very depressed tone. The youngest take-over mage just giggled and patter Juvia on the shoulder.

"It's just been 3 hours since he left, don't worry… he'll be back soon." She assured the older female. Juvia just nodded and took a gulp from her beer.

"So… I hear you're going to be teaming up with Kourin-san after her current mission?" Lisanna tried to make a conversation. It was going to her break in a few minutes anyway so she could sit and chat for a while.

"Yes. Juvia is happy to be in the same team with L… I mean Kourin-san." She smiled at her glass. Lisanna arched an eyebrow. She didn't like Kourin-san one bit and it irked her to know that the girl had people who liked her already despite her bitchiness.

"Why?" Juvia looked at her this time and Lisanna was surprised at the tender smile the water mage had on her face.

"Juvia feels like she has met an old friend. Kourin-san reminds Juvia of someone who is beautiful and kind." She hinted. She really wanted everyone to realize that Lucy was back, but Master was strict and he had a point so she dared not go against his orders.

"Her? Kind? How? Did you see just how _kind _she was earlier? She broke my leg!" Lisanna seethed. The water mage merely shook her head. She had witnessed their fight earlier and it was obvious that Lisanna was lying. She wondered how this girl could have replaced Lucy…

"But Kourin-san tried to stop you, Lisanna-san…" Juvia pointed out. This got the youngest take-over mage silent for a moment. She was about to respond when the guild doors were kicked open by Kourin who had Gray under her right arm and another boy over her shoulder. Erza followed close by with a smirk on her lips. Kaizen had on a wide grin as he watched Lucy carrying the two males.

"Uhhh… Kourin-san?" Someone from the guild mumbled. All eyes were on her and the boys.

"Yeah?" She asked, walking calmly towards her cousin and Levy.

"Who's that guy?" Levy pointed to the boy over Lucy's shoulder. Said girl glanced at the load she was carrying and then suddenly dropped him to the ground.

"O-owww!" The boy exclaimed, clutching his right shoulder (it was the first part of his body that hit the ground). Lucy just grunted and dropped the other male he was holding onto Sythe.

"What the-" Gray yelled as soon as he landed on his younger brother. Lucy watched the two brothers glare at each other, thinking that the other had done the dropping. She was about to stop them break into an all out stripping contest (since both were already reaching for their shirts) when the master jumped onto the table they were all at and cleared his throat.

"I see you've brought the guide here safely…" He narrowed his eyes at Gray who was now half naked. Sythe stared at the small man in front of him and leaned down so that he could look at him closer.

"Who're you supposed to be?" He asked rudely. Gray frowned at Sythe and hit him upside the head.

"He's the master you idiot! Don't be rude!" He scolded his younger brother. Sythe pouted and rubbed at the part of his head that was hit. Makarov watched in amusement at their interaction when something clicked in his head.

"You're brother's" He said out loud, enough for everyone in the guild to hear. Both males instantly froze and looked around them. Lucy quietly counted backwards in her head… 5… 4… 3… 2… 1-

"Oh my God! You have a brother! You never told us! What's his name! How old is he? Where is he from? What's his magic! He's gorgeous! Does he have a girl friend? Has Juvia ever met him? Juvia, come over here! You've got a brother-in-law!" Every girl and some boys exclaimed, all rushing to surround the poor startled mages.

Lucy smirked, knowing how it felt to be treated like an attraction. After all, that's what they did to her a few days back. Gajeel snapped his head to where Gray and his brother were at and shrugged. He decided that he'd meet the guy when everyone's calmed down. So he turned his attention back to the other boy seated beside him.

"Gray's got himself a brother eh…" He said, gulping down some of his beer. Edo-Natsu nodded and placed his mug of fire whiskey to his lips.

"He's their supposed guide to Desierto and Bellum. His name is Sythe." Edo-Natsu pre-introduced the younger boy to Gajeel, who just grunted and took another swig at his beer.

"Well, are ya fine with Kourin just goin' off to that kind'f mission w'thout ya? I mean, if it were Levy we're talkin' bout' I'd never leave 'er side" Gajeel said, a little worried about Lucy. But he also wondered how Kaizen was going to take it… He did have some experience with this kind of thing, since Makarov sent him on that 3 month long mission (which was the reason he found Lucy) and he knew how painful it would be to be apart from your mate. Of course, he wondered what it would feel like for normal mages since they didn't have the dragon thing to worry about.

While he thought these things, he didn't notice the distant look Edo-Natsu had on his face. He wanted to go to Lucy's side right then and there, but he didn't want to disturb their fun. She was wearing a genuine smile as she watched the childish acts of her old guild mates. He knew she really missed all of this, and to go there and call her out of her group? No way would he do that.

When Gajeel snapped out of his thoughts, Edo-Natsu was already out of his seat and was walking towards the guild doors.

"Oi! Where'r you goin? Kourin's still in here!" Gajeel called after the guy. Edo-Natsu just raised a hand and waved him off. Lucy heard Gajeel's voice and looked up to see Edo-Natsu walking out of the guild. She was about to go after him until she saw his frown. The frown that told her he needed some time alone.

* * *

><p><strong>Edo-Natsu's Side<strong>

* * *

><p>*sigh* He didn't know where he was going, all he knew was he needed some time to think about stuff… most of the stuff included Lucy and her mission.<p>

Of course, he knew enough to trust her to return to all of them safely… he wasn't worried about that. What worried him was what would happen during the duration of her mission. She'd have to spend time with her old team and the guide. Who knew what would happen then.

Would they eventually remember her? Or would she remain forgotten? He knew it would crush her even when she had that happy front of hers. As he thought these things, he didn't notice that he had entered the forest and ended up bumping into someone else.

"Owww~" he groaned, rubbing his backside.

"Owww~" the other person said at the same time as he did. When Edo-Natsu looked at the person he bumped into, his eyes widened.

"Natsu?" He asked himself, unbelieving. Well, he didn't see the guy inside the guild earlier so seeing him here now shouldn't be surprising. But to bump into him of all people… Fate sure like to play games…

"Eh? You're that K-girl's boyfriend…" Natsu pointed at him rudely.

"Her name's Kourin. Why can't you get that into that head of yours?" Edo-Natsu answered harshly.

"… Uhuh… What are you doing here?" Natsu asked, pushing himself off the ground. Edo-Natsu did the same and brushed off some of the dirt that got onto his clothes.

"Was walking around aimlessly… you?"

"Looking for some food."

After that, an awkward silence enveloped them and both searched for anything else to say to the other. When nothing came up, they decided to leave it at that. Until…

"So… you and Kourin huh…" Natsu said out of the blue, startling Edo-Natsu who was about to leave him.

"You've already asked me that, idiot."

"I did?" He asked surprised and paused for a moment before grinning. "I guess I did…" He chuckled idiotically. Edo-Natsu shook his head in disbelief and just decided to continue walking wherever.

"Where are you going?" Natsu asked, jogging to catch up with him.

"Nowhere. Leave me along, would you?" Edo-Natsu snapped irately. He wasn't really irritated; in fact he wanted to talk with the guy. It was just that he needed to maintain his jerky side when it came to Natsu. Just when he was about to go around a tree, he bumped into another person. That was the second time this day that he bumped into a person.

"Kai! Found ya!" He heard the person he bumped into exclaim. He looked down and found himself smiling when he found out who it was that he bumped into. Who else would call him Kai?

"Rin…" He grinned and poked her forehead. Natsu just remained silent all the while as he watched them interact.

"Ow… what was that for?" She glared daggers at him as she rubbed the spot he poked. Edo-Natsu just chuckled before gathering up the courage to embrace her. When he did, he felt her stiffen and that somewhat hurt him.

"Kai? Something wrong?" She asked , slowly easing into the hug.

"Nothing's wrong…" Edo-Natsu answered, hugging her tighter and snuggling his nose against the crook of her neckk. Lucy just stood there for a while before a tender smile made its way to her lips and she hugged him back.

"Okay…" She whispered and they stood in that comfortable silence. Lucy felt that Edo-Natsu was somewhat sad and if he didn't want to talk about it she shouldn't pry.

This time around, Natsu thought it was wise to leave the couple along when they were in a lovey-dovey mode. He wondered though, why his heart was aching and why every time he looked at Kourin, he was reminded of Lucy. So he forced himself to look away and leave.

"So… you feeling better?" She asked Edo-Natsu. The latter nodded but didn't let go. Natsu could still hear them even when he was at a far distance… or better yet, he was _listening _to them.

"Much better… thanks." Edo-Natsu mumbled, his breath against Lucy's neck. She shivered but didn't react violently. After all, this guy wasn't like all the others and there was nothing else going on beyond a friend comforting a friend.

"Good. Now how about we go grab dinner? It's 7 right about now…" Lucy suggested, pinching Edo-Natsu's cheeks. The boy tried to push her hands away but Lucy just tightened her grip, making it hurt more.

"Wet gow owh miiee~" He whined. Lucy just giggled and let go. Edo-Natsu's cheeks made a popping sound and when she checked it was red all over.

"Haha! Poor you…"

"Revenge…" He smiled evilly before attacking her cheeks and pulling them. Lucy squealed and swatted at his hands but he held strong. They continued to play like children… and Natsu couldn't help but listen, Kourin's laughter held him there and he couldn't bear to leave.

His heart clenched and tightened and he didn't know why… grabbing at his vest, he closed his eyes tight and forced himself to walk away, for sure this time.

"I'll really find you Lucy… even if it's the last thing I do." He murmured to himself as consolation to his aching heart.

Unbeknownst to him, a small cloaked figure watched him closely… a small but terrifying frown etched onto those old and wrinkled lips.

* * *

><p><strong>Raven: Okaay… so that took too long… for just 4000+ words… ah, well… school's kinda tight right now, and I've got these weird and confusing feelings to attend to so, SORRY… <strong>

**Hey, can you guys tell me how it feels like to be in love? I'm really confused. Oh, and since it's for the story and all… ehehehe… he… he… :( **

**Anyway! I have nothing much to say here so I'm gonna shut up and let you read the sneak peak… ciao! **

_**Sneak Peak: **_

"_**Are you sure? Are you infinitely, positively, I'll-pubch-you-if-you're-not-fucking-sure, Sure?" Gray asked Natsu as they huddled together at the edge of the room they were in. Erza, Kourin, and Sythe were talking about some things and that left them some time to talk privately. Natsu nodded his head. **_

"_**I'm sure of it, ice freak. Kourin has blond hair! I saw it when she was getting out of the hot springs!" Natsu informed Gray. The ice alchemist's eyes widened at the information and instantly hit Natsu's head.**_

"_**What were you doing at the women's hot springs?" He seethed, but there was a faint blush on his cheeks. **_

"_**I was looking for Erza! Idiot!" Natsu punched him on the face. At this, they felt Erza's gaze at them and they instantly initiated buddy-buddy mode. When the two were cleared, they glared daggers at each other. **_

"_**But if she has blond hair, why is she covering it up with black hair?"Gray asked, pinching his chin thoughtfully. **_

"_**That's what I'd like to know!" **_

**And that ends the sneak peak! :) Thanks for the read… and for the guys who're gonna leave a review, THANKS to you too!**

**Oh, and I promise to give your reviews a feedback on the next chapter… Bye~**


	14. 013: Blond Hair

**Raven:** Hello people! Welcome to the thirteenth chapter of my current story FMN! Thank you all for spending your time to read this story of mine and I deeply appreciate all those who left a review and added this story to their favorites! As well as that, I also thank the people who added me to their favorite authors… I am greatly humbled by that gesture! Another thing, I told you guys that the reply corner will be moved to this chapter… made a mistake… it'll be on the next chapter! :)

Oh, and AM NOT HAVING A CRUSH! Or am I? Argh! But thanks for those tidbits of information about Love… it's confusing, but a little helpful I guess. I think what I'm feeling right now is bordering on hate and infatuation. Still, ignore the love sick me and let us get on with the story!

Plus, I'd like to clarify some things… Acalypha is closer to Magnolia than Shirotsume is… but let's just pretend for this story, that it's the other way around. And let us think for a moment that I am the queen of Banana Land and you're an alien… Okay? Thanks! xD

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Thirteen: Blond Hair<strong>

* * *

><p>"Can I send you off tomorrow Rin?" Edo-Natsu asked Lucy as they walked backed to the guild. They had just finished dinner and were at the Magnolia shopping district.<p>

"Of course you can. Why are you even asking?" She asked curiously. Edo-Natsu remained silent and that got her a little worried. After all, he did act weirdly a while ago and the fact that he suddenly hugged her earlier was something strange and unlike him.

"Hey Kai… you alright?" Lucy asked as she stopped walking to face him. Edo-Natsu didn't look at her and kept his gaze on the pavement.

"You're really leaving tomorrow huh…" He murmured sadly. Lucy watched his eyes as a flicker of emotions ran through them.

"Hey…" Lucy cupped his cheek and leaned down to look him in the eye. "… What's wrong?" She smiled at him tenderly. Edo-Natsu looked at her and placed a hand over hers as he shook his head.

"Nothing's wrong… I'm fine Rin…" He said, forcing a smile. Lucy didn't believe him but guessed what was running through his mind. Making a tentative but bold move, she slowly wrapped her arms around his torso and pulled him in for a hug. Edo-Natsu was shocked and stood frozen in her embrace.

"Natsu…" She muttered soothingly, resting her head on his chest. Edo-Natsu's heart skipped a beat as one thought ran through his mind. _She just called me Natsu… _

"I am leaving, but I'll still be with you…" Lucy paused and placed a hand over his chest, his heart quickening under her touch. "In here… alright?" She continued, leaning back to look at him in the eyes. She saw sadness, worry, and something else she couldn't point out.

Edo-Natsu watched her for a moment before smiling tenderly and leaning his forehead on hers. "Thanks Lucy…" He said. He had that growing urge to just kiss her there but he forced himself back. He couldn't do that to Lucy. She looked at him, assuring herself that he was truly okay and then smiled.

"Now enough drama… Let's go home." She said, intertwining their hands together and pulling him with her.

"Home?" Edo-Natsu asked stupidly.

"Our apartment, remember? Gawd Kai… pull yourself together. You're weirding me out." She said in disgust but her smile said otherwise.

"Oh… right~" He answered. Lucy smirked at him and dragged him to their new home. This would be their first night there. "But we don't have a bed."

"I'll just ask Aries to make us one of her wool cushions."

"Okay" Edo-Natsu muttered unintelligibly. Lucy glanced at him and sneered.

"Race you there?" She said. A competitive smile reached Edo-Natsu's lips.

"Winner gets fire chicken!" He exclaimed, all revved up.

"Hey! That only applies to you and the pink haired idiot!"

"Oh… You're right!

* * *

><p><strong>8:00 PM Fairy Tail Guild<strong>

* * *

><p>"Clear?" Erza asked Natsu – no, more of declared. She, along with the fire dragonslayer, ice alchemist, the youngest take over mage, and their guide were gathered around one of the guild tables discussing things about what Erza, Gray, Kourin and Sythe talked about earlier. Lisanna wasn't supposed to be there, but she asked (more of begged) Erza to let her in.<p>

"I get it. We travel for 2 months to the border between the three countries: Fiore, Seven and Bosco. And then we stop over inside Bosco for 2 weeks to get some stuff… when that's done and over with, we walk all the way to Stella. After that, we're supposed to trek the mountains of…" Natsu paused and tried to remember what the mountain was called. Lisanna saw him struggling and decided to fill in.

"Joya, Natsu…" She smiled at him and patted his lap. Natsu was weirded out by that gesture but didn't show it. He smiled to cover up.

"Uh… Yeah… the mountains of Joya… So when we reach the Main City, we'll stay for I-don't-know-how-many weeks in it to get some stuff again. And then… I think we have to hire some sand glider boat thing and ride all the way to the Mainland of Desierto. I forgot what's next after that." He stopped, scratching his head.

"I'm surprised you actually remembered most of what we said…" Gray raised his eyebrows at the fire mage. Natsu shot him a death glare but before he could even open his mouth for a comeback, Erza spoke up.

"I'm impressed Natsu. But you have to better your memory further. Sythe, would you mind continuing our route from where he stopped?" Erza asked (more of commanded) the youngest mage in the room. He nodded his head, unfazed by the tone of voice she used on him, and faced the fire dragonslayer.

"Look here Pinky-kun…" Sythe began, earning a smirk of victory from Gray and a hiss of irritation from the offended man. "After we reach the Mainland of Desierto, we have to search for Fabian. He's an expert sand glider who can lead us swiftly and quickly through the dangerous parts of Western Desierto. If I correctly estimated our travel time we would get to the boarder in one week. And with all that wrapped up, the general journey will take us at least 4 months."

"Why do I have to listen to this anyway?" Natsu asked, confused.

"Because, ash-for-brains… if you get lost on the way there, at least you'd know where to go next." Gray sneered, earning a glare from the fire dragonslayer.

"I don't want to hear that coming from you, stripper" Natsu retorted, glancing down at Gray's bare chest and boxer clad legs. The ice alchemist followed the dragonslayer's gaze and stared in disbelief.

"Gah! I did it again! Oh hell…" Gray exclaimed, searching around for his clothes. But then he felt a strong demonic aura focused on him… and he could guess who was emitting that dangerous aura.

"Gray. Clothes. NOW." Erza said in a grave voice that sent the poor ice mage running. Sythe could only laugh at his brother while Lisanna shook her head with a smile on her face.

"So, getting back on track… Gray is correct. There is a great probability that we will end up separated from the group on our way to the boarder, so knowing our route beforehand will do all of us good. Now, if this matter is settled, our meeting is adjourned. Get some rest and be here at exactly 3:00 AM. Late comers will be punished. Good night." Erza finished, standing up and walking out of the guild.

"But what about Bernie-san? Did you guys tell her about the new arrangements?" Sythe asked. Erza stopped and glanced at him with confusion. Lisanna wondered who Bernie-san was, while Natsu was wearing a small smirk.

"Bernie-san?" Erza asked, a little unsure of herself. But then she remembered what Kourin-san told Sythe and she had to suppress a light laugh.

"I'm sure she would have no problem with this. Now it would be best for each of us to get home and catch some sleep." She said, not bothering to correct him and disappeared into the darkness outside.

"Good night Erza," Lisanna waved. Sythe just watched the older girl and then glanced at Natsu who was thinking deeply.

"I'm going ahead to look for aniki… see you tomorrow pinky-kun, Lisanna-san…" Sythe bowed before jogging away in search of his older brother.

"So~ Natsu, care to walk me home?" Lisanna asked sweetly, leaning onto him. Natsu felt weird but nodded his head.

"Sure. Got nothing to do anyway."

* * *

><p><strong>11:32 PM Lucy and Edo-Natsu's Apartment<strong>

* * *

><p>Edo-Natsu stirred as he felt a pair of warm, soft arms wrap themselves around his torso. He thought it was a dream and so he leaned into the embrace and even nuzzled what seemed to be a woman's neck. He grinned sleepily when he heard her sigh in content and so he also wrapped his own arms around the girl's waist.<p>

"Mmmm… Na… Su…" The girl whispered, her warm breath tickling his bare shoulder. Edo-Natsu cracked an eye open and smiled broadly when he saw that it was Lucy in his arms. But then he realized that it couldn't be a dream since he could feel everything around him… startled he suddenly sat up, dragging with him the girl in his arms.

"Hey… stop moving…" Lucy muttered, pulling him down. Edo-Natsu felt his face flush several dark shades of red when he felt her breasts press against his chest and his heart hammer onto his ribs.

"S-sorry…" whispered a flustered apology but then completely froze when Lucy suddenly sat up and straddled him, her arms now around his neck.

"Natsu… why're you so tense?" She asked, looking at him through sleepy eyes. He remained silent and just stared at her, not knowing what to do.

"Hey… Natsu~ you still there?" Lucy asked, leaning into his face. Now they were just a few centimeters apart and Edo-Natsu knew that with just a slight movement, they'd end up kissing. He also knew that if he talked, their lips would brush against each other.

"Mmmm…" He resorted to just humming a response. He'd rather not answer to a sleep-dazed Lucy and avoid a beating later on.

"Why aren't you talking?" Lucy asked again, this time leaning in closer. Edo-Natsu's heart pounded against his chest and he felt all the blood rush to his face. Lucy's lips were now brushing against his.

When Lucy didn't get a response, she opened her eyes and startled Edo-Natsu. Her eyes were now completely back to their original shade. He guessed that maybe when she was sleeping, she'd have no control over her transformation.

"Natsu~" She whispered, her breath hitting his lips. Edo-Natsu closed his eyes, trying hard to suppress the same urge that hit him back at the forest. If he couldn't fight it off now he was sure Lucy would end up hating him.

"Answer me…" She muttered, her voice seeming to go a few octaves lower. Edo-Natsu guessed that sleepiness was taking over and he was thankful for that.

"Fine… be… tht…way… wyvented…takssswuu…" She mumbled the last part as she drifted off to sleep and so he couldn't understand what she wanted to say. He was about to smile when he unexpectedly felt a pair of soft, warm lips fall on his own as Lucy's body fell limp.

His eyes widened and the beat of his heart suddenly sped up and his face felt hot. _Finally!_

* * *

><p><strong>2:45 AM<strong>

* * *

><p>Lucy woke up when the warmth beside her and around her waist suddenly disappeared. When she opened her eyes, she saw a blur of red and brown moving in front of her and guessed that it must be Edo-Natsu.<p>

"Natsu?" She mumbled, rubbing her eyes and sitting up. The said boy turned to look at her and smiled.

"Good morning sunshine!" He grinned at her while fastening his belt. When her eyes cleared she blushed when she saw him clad in only his slacks and nothing more, those perfectly cut abs calling to her. It was the first time she reacted that way towards a male body… except maybe Gray, but then she was immune by now.

"What're you doing up so early?" Lucy asked, pushing the blanket off and stretching.

"You should be the one up early you know… it's already 2:47 in the morning and you have to be at the guild by 3:00." Edo-Natsu informed her as he put on his red shirt.

"Oh… OH! Crap! Erza's gonna have my hide!" Lucy exclaimed, jumping off the bed and running into the bathroom. Edo-Natsu chuckled and shook his head. He was supposed to be sad because she was leaving, but after what happened last night? Hah! Nothing can take his happiness away.

"You've got 14 minutes left~" Edo-Natsu called out. He laughed when he heard her shout a string of curses meant for him. After he zipped up his coat he decided to clean up. Lucy slept like a 5 year old kid, resulting to the pillows Aries made for them scattered all around the floor, the blanket and covers all rumpled that it was unrecognizable.

"Ahh~ Thank God I've got Aquarius and Cancer…"He heard Lucy sigh inside the bathroom. She probably took them out to help her get ready faster than the usual. But what surprised him was that Aquarius didn't drown her and destroy their new apartment.

In 9 minutes, Lucy was done changing into her usual outfit and she was now strapping her twin swords across her back and carefully hiding her other sword behind her. She then clipped her hair into a pony-tail and swept her bangs to the side for finishing touches.

"Done. Let's go…" She grabbed Edo-Natsu's hand and dragged him out of their apartment.

"What about clothes? Didn't they say to bring a set of winter and desert clothes?" He asked, catching up to her so they were now running side by side instead of her dragging him.

"I've already packed. I just asked Virgo to hold it in the Spirit world for me so that I won't have to carry that much of a load." She answered, leaping onto the roof of a building.

"Oh… what about breakfast?" He asked again.

"I'll just grab something to eat while we travel." She smiled at him as they leaped off the building and landed in front of their guild.

Erza was already there, her luggage double the amount of her usual. Natsu and Gray were already there too, having a silent glaring contest. Their luggage seemed to be just right for the trip. Sythe was there too, and he still carried the same amount of things as he did when they first met him.

"So… now that we're all here… with Kaizen-kun of course, I'll just clear things up since Bernie-san wasn't around last night." Sythe started. Lucy raised an eyebrow and looked at him. She guessed no one even bothered clearing the fact that her name wasn't Bernie… oh well, she didn't care.

"You see… we changed the route and means to go to the border."

"What?! Don't tell me…" Lucy muttered to herself, already feeling sick.

"We will go there by train…" Sythe finished. Natsu also felt sick but he wasn't that affected by it anymore. Wendy helped him out by implanting a dissolving lacrima in him. The lacrima contained her Troia and it would last for at least 15 weeks. Erza and Gray just looked at Kourin-san with confusion in their eyes. _Don't tell me she has motion sickness too?_

* * *

><p><strong>3:30 AM Magnolia Train #04: Magnolia-Shirotsume, 18 minutes into departure<strong>

* * *

><p>Lucy was having a hard time keeping her eyes open; but at least it wasn't as worse as she thought. She was only experiencing a headache and nothing more. She pitied Natsu though; who told Erza about Wendy's Troia but was still forced to sleep on her lap. As she looked outside the window, she couldn't help but drift off into sleep and dream about her last moment with Edo-Natsu just minutes before.<p>

"_I can't take a train! I'm gonna die!" Lucy whined to Edo-Natsu as he held her in his arms. They were waiting for the attendants to finish loading their luggage. Erza went with the attendants, wanting to keep a close, watchful eye on her things. Gray, Sythe, and Natsu were seated on a bench, the youngest mage between the three sitting in the middle as a moderator. _

"_Come on Rin… it's not so bad. You weren't like this back then…" Edo-Natsu smiled at her as he drew soothing circles on her back. Lucy somewhat relaxed but she still hated the thought. _

"_Why can't I just teleport there? It's easier, faster, and I could get things over and done with…" Lucy frowned, leaning back and looking him in the eyes._

"_You can do that. But Master specifically said to have those three and the guide at your back. You can't disobey him now, can you?" Edo-Natsu challenged her. He watched as she thought it over in her mind and grinned when he saw her give up._

"_Fine…" Lucy mumbled. He chuckled at her childishness and decided to give her a hug. _

"_I'm gonna miss you…" Edo-Natsu whispered against her neck. Lucy smiled at the gesture and patted his back._

"_Same here, Kai…" She whispered back. They stayed like that for a while until they heard the warning *hoot* of the train. They both leaned back and looked at each other before Edo-Natsu made a bold move and leaned in for a kiss. Lucy froze but didn't push him away. Edo-Natsu smirked triumphantly, thinking that she might like him too. And thinking back to earlier this morning, he was probably right. _

"_Take care," He whispered as he broke the kiss and let go of her. Lucy stared at him, dumbfounded. She couldn't find words to say to him… no, she couldn't even talk to begin with. _

"_Wh… K-Kai..." She stuttered. At that moment, Erza's commanding voice called all of them and she had no choice but to leave him._

"_See you soon?" Edo-Natsu waved. That was when Lucy broke out of her shocked stupor and broke into a grin. She jogged back to him and gave him a surprise peck on the lips. _

"_Soon"_

* * *

><p><strong>11:30 Magnolia Train #04: Shirotsume (stop-over)<strong>

* * *

><p>"<em>Kourin…" Edo-Natsu whispered her name. She smiled.<em>

"_Hey Kourin-san…" He did it again. But wait… Edo-Natsu didn't call her Kourin-san…_

"Kourin-san… wake up… we're here." She heard the familiar voice of an ice alchemist pull her from her sleep and when she opened her eyes, she found herself leaning onto the same Ice alchemist's shoulder.

"What the-" Lucy sat up straight from surprise and disbelief.

"Good morning sunshine," Gray teased. Lucy narrowed her eyes at him and punched his shoulder. She was annoyed. Not at him, but at his words. It reminded her of Edo-Natsu and she didn't want that… it hurt her, somehow…

"Ow! That hurt!" Gray whined, rubbing his harmed body part. Lucy just rolled her eyes at him and looked around.

"Where are we," She more of demanded than asked. Sythe looked at her and smiled.

"We're at Shirotsume now Bernie-san… we're stopping over to eat lunch and then leaving for Acalypha in an hour." He informed her. Lucy nodded, ignoring the _Bernie _part, remembering their route. She then looked around and saw that Erza was already dragging an unconscious Natsu towards the exit. Gray had already recovered and was following after the redhead.

"You can leave your swords here…" Sythe stopped her as she was about to reach for her twin scimitars. Lucy shook her head.

"I don't go anywhere without them." She merely answered before strapping them across her back and stepping out of the chamber. Sythe watched her as she walked away and wondered why she was so cold and rash towards everyone.

* * *

><p><strong>3:53 PM Magnolia Train #04: Shirotsume-Acalypha<strong>

* * *

><p>3 hours and 13 minutes later, the train the team was in reached the town of Acalypha. Gray didn't dare wake Kourin up lest she inflicted pain upon him again, so he left that task to Sythe; who was a little scared to do so.<p>

"Uhmmm… ne, Bernie-san…" Sythe began, nudging her slowly by the arm. Lucy stirred and slapped the hand away. She didn't want to wake up yet… she was having an awesome dream of conquering the world.

"Bernie-san… we're here…" Sythe tried again, this time going at a far distance in case she suddenly decided to hit him like she did to Gray. Lucy groaned and slowly opened her eyes. She looked around and found the younger mage looking at her scarily… like one wrong move and she'd have his head.

"What." She snapped, sitting up.

"We're here now… Erza-san and the others are unloading their luggage. They left me here to wake you," Sythe nervously answered. He watched the older girl cautiously and winced when she suddenly jumped up.

"Well what are you waiting for, pipsqueak. Let's get moving." Lucy said, strapping her swords over her shoulders. Sythe sighed in relief. He wasn't going to be dead meat, thank God!

Now both of them were walking towards the others when someone suddenly bumped into Lucy from behind. She fell forward, onto her knees and her swords clattered noisily as they hit the paved ground. Sythe's eyes widened when he saw the dangerous look Bernie-san had on her face. It was filled with murderous rage.

"Look where you're going," The person who bumped into her hissed, turning around to glare at the ebony haired mage. He had silver hair that went up in spikes; weird jagged marks ran from his forehead down to his chin. The man's eyes were slanted and dark blue; his mouth formed into an angry sneer.

As if everyone could feel the tension building, they stopped walking and watched as the girl with black hair crawled to pick up her swords. She quietly checked for any scratches on the scabbard and sighed in relief when she found that there wasn't any. Sythe just remained silent, looking around for any sign of aniki or the others. He was sure a fight was coming up… and he needed the others to help stop it.

**Lucy's POV**

I felt relief wash over me when I saw that the scabbards weren't scratched or anything. These swords meant a lot to me… and if I found so much as a small nick on them, then the guy who bumped into me wouldn't be standing right now, he wouldn't even be breathing. I looked up and saw Sythe looking around frantically. He was probably looking for Erza or the any of the others. Damned kid knew me well.

"Hey! Are you even listening to me, bitch!" The guy who bumped into me hissed, kicking me on the legs. I remained calm and collected. There was no use fighting this guy anyway, unless he suddenly decided to –

"Stop ignoring me!" He exclaimed, grabbing one of the swords. My eyes widened and I felt the other sword in my hand tremble. _Oh no! _

"Hey! Stop trying to pick a fight with her!" I heard Sythe call the scarred man. I looked at him and shook my head. _This isn't your fight pipsqueak… _I said through my eyes. He caught the look, and even if he didn't want to, he stepped back.

"What? I'm just trying to teach little miss swords here some manners…" He sneered, hitting his palm with the scabbard. I narrowed my eyes at him… I could feel the sword in my hands quiver.

"Give me back my sword…" I said as calmly as I could. Scar-face raised an eyebrow and looked at the sword he had. I watched him closely as he surveyed it.

"What's so important about this sword that's got you so mad, girlie?" He challenged, twirling it around by the hook on the hilt.

"Just give it back already…" I cleared through gritted teeth. A crowd began to gather around us and if I wasn't already starting to get pissed off, then I wouldn't have really cared.

"What? This?" He said, waving the sword directly in front of my face. I reached for it but right before I touched it, he threw it away. My eyes widened as I heard a silent growl underneath my hand. I glared at scar-face. That was the last straw.

"If you want it, fight for it." He challenged. I quickly strapped the sword I had in my belt and kicked myself off the ground. He was gonna get it… to hell with being calm.

"You asked for it, scar-face! Here I come!" I exclaimed, rushing to him with my fist drawn back. He smirked, probably thinking that my punch would do nothing against his awesomeness… but he was dead wrong. As my fist collided with his chin, I heard a cracking sound and that got a smile out of me. He flew several meters back and landed with a huge gaping hole on one of the pillar's station.

"That all you got? I mean, for a talker, you didn't put up much of a fight…" I said, walking towards my poor sword… I narrowed my eyes when I saw a large scratch at the side of the scabbard. _I'm so sorry… _

"It's not over yet, bitch!" I heard scar-face yell in frustration as he made a dash for me. I didn't really move… my gaze still intent on the scratch. At the last minute though, before his fist hit my shoulder, I side stepped him. That resulted to scar-face losing his balance and falling on the ground face first. She waited for a moment before realizing that he was now unconscious.

"I think it is. Hey pipsqueak!" I called Sythe over to my side.

"Yeah?" He asked his voice shaky. For a 15 year old boy, he seemed to be a little scaredy-cat.

"Let's go." I just said, caressing the scratched surface of the scabbard and strapping it slowly beside the other sword. Sythe nodded as he obediently followed me. And then one of the attendants caught my attention.

"Hey you…" I pointed to him. He looked at me nervously before coming over. "Take that guy to the secure unit, would you?"

Before I could even finish my sentence, he already nodded his head vigorously and took off. Heh! Scaredy-cat…

"Okay… Now that that's done and over with, where to pipsqueak?"

* * *

><p><strong>4:31 PM AcalyphaMagic Store 3648<strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Normal POV<strong>

Lucy stared at the books on the shelf. Her eyes were filled with wonder and longing, but she suppressed the nagging urge of reaching for one and reading through it. She must. Or else her front as Kourin Redfox would be compromised.

But the books! Oh the wonderful books by Zekua Melon! By her other favorite authors! How they cried her name… calling her… beckoning her to come closer, to reach for their binds, to open their pages… _Lucy! Restrain yourself! If you so much as touch one of those books, 50 laps around Acalypha! _

"Miss, you stare at the books so intensely… are you going to buy one of them?" A young female employee appeared from behind one of the shelves. Lucy was surprised but she hid it well buy shaking her head.

"No." She just answered before walking away. But the girl was persistent.

"Will you be buying anything else?" She asked, skipping by her side. Lucy shook her head again.

"I'm just here to look around." Lucy said, turning a corner and searching around for Erza or maybe Gray. They should be finished purchasing whatever it was they needed to buy. Natsu for sure was at the toys section… but what about Sythe? Maybe he would be around Gray.

"We have some great sales today, ma'am! Perhaps you'd be interested in our new product? It's an item made specifically for sword wielders like yourself." The girl tried catching her attention again, but this time, it worked. Lucy stopped on her tracks and turned to look at the young girl. She had disheveled short green hair, bright golden eyes, and a charming smile. But underneath that smile, Lucy could see a dark past. She eyed her name tag and learned that the girl's name was Camille.

She raised her eyebrows, indicating that she wanted to hear more and that seemed to make Camille happy. Besides, if it was something that could help her take care of her swords more… then she'd be up for it.

"It's a belt created by the brand Heart Kreuz. It was specifically made for non-re-quip swords based mages who have trouble carrying too many swords around." Camille said chirpily. She sounded excited and that somehow got Lucy to smile. She remembered the times when she talked that happily about something, even though this girl's joy came from work.

"Where is it?" Lucy asked. She liked where this was going. If her mind served her right, then it would mean that the belt was some kind of storage tool for swords. Camille smiled at her widely before leading her to an area of the shop with large shelves and weaponry hung about. Lucy was instantly captured when she saw the corner filled with swords and daggers and all sorts of blades.

"Here…" Camille began, opening a glass case which enclosed a beautiful black belt with silver spirals going around the holes and the brim. At each hole there seemed to be a symbol situated above, below or beside it. Attached to that belt was a small silver pouch with black diamond's serving as a border and an intercrossing sword at the center.

"The pouch is where all your bladed weapons will be placed. And then when you want it to appear just touch the symbol it belongs to, zap it with a small amount of magic and it will be in your hands after a few seconds." She pointed at each part of the belt as she spoke.

"As a demonstration, can you lend me one of your swords?" Camille asked politely, glancing at the dark sword hanging on her hip. Lucy hesitated for a moment before she thought better of it and handed her the sword. She watched as the younger girl opened the pouch and slipped in the sword. As if it had a bottomless end, the sword disappeared and one of the symbols on the belt glowed.

"Now watch closely as I _summon _the sword through the symbol for _sword. _Again, first you have to touch it… and then zap it with a small amount of your magic" Lucy watched as Camille did just that. She tapped the cross like symbol with her forefinger and channeled some magic into the character. Right after she did that, a warm golden glow engulfed her hand and in a flash of the same light, a golden intricate seal erupted around her fist and then her sword materialized within Camille's hand.

"And that's how you _summon _a weapon by using this belt. Oh and it's called the _Rapier's Belt_." Camille finished as she handed Lucy back her sword.

"Does the pouch accept keys? I am a celestial mage as well." Lucy asked. She was convinced of its use in her future battles and so even if it didn't come with a symbol for keys, she was so going to buy it.

"It does! It does! It also allows other weapons, summoning based objects, magical instruments, and even solid food!" Camille answered cheerily. Lucy couldn't help but smile.

"How much does it cost?" And then came the hard part, Lucy only brought 500,000 Jewels with her and she was sure that an item as useful and beautiful as the Rapier's belt would cost more than that amount.

"It's originally priced at 750,000 J, but since it is new and since you _might _be the first to purchase it… then I'm sure boss would put a discount." The young girl smiled at her encouragingly. Lucy merely nodded. If that was true, and even if it wasn't, what harm could possibly spending 750,000 J do on her bank account? She wasn't bragging, but spending that didn't even leave a dent…

"I'll take it…" She said. Camille instantly burst into a fit of squeals as if she won a lottery and grabbed Lucy's wrist dragging her to the cashier. Lucy didn't mind at all…

"This miss here is going to buy the Rapier's Belt…" Camille beamed at the old man who just stared at her unbelievingly.

"A-are you sure miss? That's gonna cost you lots…" The old man, who had the name tag: Ben, said. Lucy just shrugged and unclipped the small pack she had snipped securely around her torso.

"Why don't you talk to Boss, I'm sure he's gonna give a discount when he hears that it's been sold…" Camille added happily. Ben just nodded and turned to the landline phone beside the old cash register. But then he suddenly bent forward and seemed as if he was kicking something. Lucy watched as Ben glared at something behind the counter. Lucy ignored it, thinking that it was just an old guy thing.

"Yes… a miss wants to buy herself the Rapier's belt… uhuh, Camille's gotten her to buy it I guess… yes… she's serious about it…" Ben talked to the person, who Lucy guessed to be the Boss, on the other end of the line. "Wh-what?! That much?... A-are you sure boss? But that's - … yes… yeah… I'll do it." And then he turned to look at Lucy menacingly.

"You've gotten yourself a 400,000 J discount… I dun' really know why, but that's what the boss says. And Camille, you be sure to go see him later on… I think you're gettin' some sorta surprise… Now gimme the merchandise so I could give her a proper receipt." The old man said grudgingly.

Lucy's eyes widened and she felt her breath hitch. _No way! 400,000 Jewels?! That much of a discount?! _Even Camille was surprised.

"Dun' look at me that way miss… now Camille, gimme the belt so she can get her receipt." Ben said irately. He was starting to get irritated. Camille handed him the belt and stared at Lucy.

"What." Lucy arched an eyebrow. Camille just shook her head and giggled.

"You're just so lucky ma'am. Boss isn't the kind of man who would give off discounts as large as 400,000. And one more thing, he hates losing money." Camille said, her smile never disappearing. Lucy just retained her stoic expression.

"Here you go miss, be sure to take care of the merchandise. It's a limited edition belt series." Ben said gruffly as he handed her the packaged item. Lucy nodded before realizing what he just said.

"Limited edition? Which means…"

"Yep… that's one of 5 Rapier's Belt's made. There is also the Wringer's Girdle and the Hephaestus' Strap. This type is more famous though, for its name and usefulness. The Wringer's Girdle can only carry aerial weapons like shurikens… Hephaestus' strap can only carry heavy weapons like a hammer." Camille informed her with her smile growing brighter by each second.

"I see… well then thank you. I'll be taking my leave now." Lucy nodded her head. She made a move to turn around when she felt a strong and large hand stop her from leaving.

"Miss, Camille 'ere fergot to tell you one more thing about the rapier's belt." Ben said in a serious voice. Lucy just stared at him.

"It doesn't work for weak mages and humans. I'm guessing you do magic since you bought it, but if you're so much as weak as them summoner's, then you'd best return the item." He looked into Lucy's eyes, searching for a sign of fear. But the girl didn't show any.

"I understand. Now can you please let go of my shoulder… thanks." Lucy nodded before walking away and searching the store for any sign of the others. Ben watched as she disappeared around a corner shelf.

"Hmmm… This girl seems different than what the others said…" Ben whispered to Camille who shook her head.

"Oh shut up… Lucy's a sweet girl, she's just covering it up with that delinquent front of hers. Now, tell me again why you didn't want her to get it in the first place?"

"The aura made me think differently. But since you've got the better sense between the two of us, then I backed down."

"Good choice. I have another question…"

"What?"

"When are we gonna leave this place? The human world really does something to my system…" Camille frowned, noticing her hand had turned pale. Ben looked at his own hand and nodded.

"We can leave now, right after we erase their memories and untie them." Ben answers, kneeling down. He pulled open a drawer door that revealed two salesclerks tied up and gagged. One had the name Wes on his name tag while the other had Eas.

"Sorry about that… we had to give a present to Lucy…" Camille smiled apologetically at the two of them, who in turn, just stared terrifyingly. Earlier this afternoon, the same girl had threatened to harm them, describing the torture they would go through vividly if they didn't obey her _request _and painfully tied them up and threw them inside the cabinet.

Suddenly, Camille was covered in a silver light and a weird looking woman replaced her. She had a curvaceous body and was dressed similarly to belly dancers. Her hair was tied in an ox horn fashion. Half of her face was covered by a cloth tied around her head, bearing the zodiac: Libra's sign. Concealing her neck was a thick necklace, while numerous bangles hung around her arms and legs. Dangling from her hand, the woman carried a pair of golden scales with thin cords running from her fingertips to the sides of the scales.

"Forgive my companion, when it comes to that girl, she becomes a different person." Ben said as he himself was suddenly covered with a warm, sea-blue light. Wes and Eas stared as Ben was replaced by twins clad in what seemed like a toga made of fish scales. The other twin had a dark ocean colored toga while the other had a lighter shade on.

"Hey, you're wrong Pisces…" The woman frowned at him. Pisces just rolled his eyes at her as he pulled the two men out of the drawer.

"No we're not Libra, you're bipolar. You act like a stubborn devil when you're not around your owner." The twins pointed out in complete synchronized harmony. Libra just pouted at them childishly.

"I'm not like that… am I?" She turned to face the two men and looked at them with tear filled eyes. They shook their heads in fear of getting hit if they motioned otherwise.

"Oh, don't bother asking them. They're too afraid of displeasing you to be saying the truth. Now erase their memories or the other customers will discover us." The twins said harshly. Libra just pouted more but followed what they said anyway.

"You guys are awful. I wonder what kind of torture Lucy's going to be in when she handles your key." Libra grumbled irately under her breath as she placed each hand on the two human's heads. They froze for a minute in fear, but then they started to doze off.

"I'd say that her life would be a whole lot better" Pisces answered smugly, grinning at each other. Libra just rolled her eyes

"Good. Now untie them and let's leave."

"You twins aren't the boss of me…"

"We are. Now let's go." And with that, they vanished in a flash of blue and silver.

"Hmph… kids and their perception of respect"

**5:18 PM**

"Wake up!" Wes heard a loud voice delve into his sea of dreams. He moaned when he felt someone shaking him so harshly that it seemed like he was the pepper inside a pepper shaker.

"Oi! Can you hear me?! I know you can, wake up!" He heard the same loud voice scream at his right ear. Wes opened his eyes and saw that everything was a blur. There was something pink attached to what seemed to be the head of a man. And that man was the one shaking him.

"Wake up I said!" Natsu yelled at the employee. They were about to pay the stuff they bought when they found that the cashiers were asleep on the floor. Erza suggested to wake them up via a torture session since they fell asleep during work and that was a severe crime (according to her). Gray proposed to freeze them until they wake up because of the cold. Natsu on the other hand, just went ahead and did what he knew worked best. Make noise and shake them awake. Lucy and Sythe on the other hand, went ahead and searched for a hotel they could stay at for two days.

"U-urgh…" Wes groaned as the shaking stopped and his vision cleared. It seemed as though the pink haired thing on top of the man's head was his hair… a man with pink hair… before he could laugh his head off at the absurdness of it all, he instantly slapped a hand over his mouth.

"Good. Erza, he's awake." Wes watched as the pink haired man called a red haired woman to his side. When he saw her, he instantly recognized who they were.

"You're Fairy Tail's strongest team…" He whispered. Erza and Gray smirked while Natsu grinned proudly.

"Got that right seaweed," Natsu said, pertaining to his light green colored hair.

"Now that you have come to, I'd like to ask some questions before we purchase these objects." Erza said seriously, her tone of voice deadly. Wes looked around nervously and his eyes widened when he saw Eas slumped up unconscious on the floor.

"S-sure…" Wes trembled.

"Why were the two of you asleep when we found you? That is an offense as an employee." Erza leaned forward and eyed him. He couldn't help but gulp in terror. This was Erza Scarlet we were talking about: Titania! The Fairy Queen!

"I-I don't really remember…" Wes stuttered, his mouth refusing to coordinate with his brain due to fear. Erza eyed him… stared into his eyes… probably finding anything dishonest about his statement. But she found none.

"Well then… since that is settled, we'd like to buy these things and have them sent to the Earl and Fairy Hotel in my name." The Knight flipped from her deadly, intimidating side to her completely "friendly" side. He just didn't get these Fairy Tail mages. They were so eccentric and unpredictable that you'd never know what would happen next when they're around. Wes just did as he was told and started doing what she told him to do. He was going to wake Eas when they're gone… since it felt like if he didn't start now, Titania was sure to threaten to drive a sword down his throat.

"I expect it to arrive in two days time… These are the items." Erza motioned to a mountainous heap piled neatly at the south wall of the store. Wes's jaw dropped and he almost felt light headed. Trust them to surprise him continuously… and to expect him to finish packing these things in two days. Even with magic, that was impossible! He was about to tell Titania this, when he saw her look at him expectantly with those edged eyes of hers. Swallowing down his earlier thoughts… he nodded.

* * *

><p><strong>6:12 PM Acalypha Hot Springs: Women's<strong>

* * *

><p>"Aaaah…" Lucy let out a sigh of satisfaction as soon as she felt her strained muscles relax under the hot water. Right after she and Sythe had secured 3 rooms for the five of them in the Earl and Fairy Hotel (Sadly, with the budget Erza gave them, that was all they could afford so sharing rooms was inevitable); she left and did some strolling around to keep her mind off some things… and that's when she stumbled upon the Hot Springs. It has been a while since she's been in one, and it felt damn good!<p>

"Mmmhmmm…" She started humming to herself, until a random thought came into her mind…

"Come to think of it, Love and Lucky is just around here…" She spoke to herself. She missed her mother gravely and come to think of it, it's been a while since she last visited her grave.

"Maybe I can leave early in the morning and come back by the time they wake up…" Lucy planned a way to get to see her mother after such a long time. She did continue writing her unsent letters, but that wasn't enough.

"Yep. I can do that." She smiled and stretched her hand to look at the pink fairy tail mark on her hand. She wondered why it didn't fade and why she was allowed to have another one below her left shoulder. Still, Lucy couldn't help but remember the good old days of her fairy life before everything that happened, happened. She missed her old self… that girl who used to love all the sweet stuff, who hated getting dirty when it was unnecessary, who was naïve enough to think that romance was everything in the world next to nakama.

Lucy was kinda thankful that, that incident happened. If not, she wouldn't have grown as strong as she was now. Her strength wouldn't have increased, she wouldn't have gotten closer to Edo-Natsu… she wouldn't have started feeling that way towards him… she wouldn't have changed… Slowly, a sad smile made its way onto her soft features before a faint golden light surrounded her. When it disappeared, Kourin Redfox was replaced by Lucy Heartfilia.

"It's been a while since I've been in my original appearance… It feels kinda weird now that I think about it" Lucy spoke to herself as she kept still and stared at her reflection on the water. Those nostalgic amber eyes stared at her, the girls blond locks all bunched up at the top of her head with soft waves framing her face. She smiled at her reflection and saw her old, genuine smile.

She remained inside the hot springs for more than half an hour and decided to leave when she noticed that it was starting to get dark. She did promise Sythe that she would be at the hotel by dinner. Lucy rose out of the water and grabbed her small towel before walking back to the women's locker room. As she walked there, she thought she heard a noise outside and made sure to check on it when she was done.

Upon reaching the locker rooms, she started reverting back to her other person when she thought she heard someone gasp behind her; but when she whipped her head around, she found nobody there. She decided to ignore that and changed back to Kourin Redfox and then slipped into her clothes.

* * *

><p><strong>5:49 PM Earl and Fairy Hotel: Lobby<strong>

* * *

><p>Natsu was eating a large submarine burger (something they got from a snack stand) while Gray and Sythe sat with each other in silence as they watched their Scarlet haired companion inputted their travels so far into an archive orb. It glowed with every new surge of information and hummed as it turned on its axis in unimaginable speed. When it was over, the orb silently floated in front of Erza before blinking blue a few times and then falling. She caught it before it reached the ground and gave a nod of satisfaction.<p>

"Now that, that is over… Sythe… Where is she?" Erza turned around to face the younger of the Fullbuster brothers. He swallowed the lump of fear that rose in his throat and gave an unsettled look to his brother. Natsu was still at his food, all his senses focused on finishing his _activity. _

"I… Well she told me she was going to look around for a while… and that she'd be back before dinner came." Sythe said, his voice quivering a little. Erza's calculating gaze pierced through him like a needle and it was supposed to go that way for a few more minutes until Natsu suddenly gave a loud, rude burp.

"Ahhhh~ thanks for the meal… what're we talking about again?" He asked, patting his belly. Sythe and Gray watched Erza cautiously, in case she was going to punish him for interrupting him, but nothing came.

"Kourin-san's not here yet dumbass…" Gray answered… a little unsure why Erza ignored that rude burping. Natsu looked at him for a moment before narrowing his eyes in thought.

"So that's why I couldn't smell her…" He mumbled to himself.

"If that is so… Then I'm going to look around as well. If you want to do the same, be sure to be back here at exactly 7:00 in the evening. You should know what to expect when you're late. I'll be leaving now." Erza said, stalking off to one of those hot springs she loved coming to here. It wasn't that far, just a 5 minute sprint…

"huh… Erza seemed a little excited to leave… Hey Sythe, how bout we have a go at the forest near here?" Gray looked at his little brother who nodded eagerly.

"See you Pinky-kun!" They teasingly bid the fire dragonslayer good bye and started walking off.

"Hey! I wanna come too!" Natsu yelled after them, but Gray dismissed that thought.

"No way, ash-for-brains… this is a bonding between brothers, so unless you've got Fullbuster DNA in you… no can do." Gray answered without even turning around. Natsu's shoulders slouched in defeat until he remembered where he and Happy used to go to whenever they would come to Acalypha for a mission. It was one of those calm lakes full of exotic fishes and it was a nice place to just keep still and relax.

Besides that, it was near one of those hot springs, so he could go there when he starts getting bored. And with that thought in mind, he ran off towards the Acalypha lagoon.

* * *

><p><strong>6:48 PM Some place near the women's hot springs<br>**

* * *

><p>"Erza?!" Natsu called around for the knight; wanting to tell her something he overheard about a dark mage who was looking for a female Fairy Tail mage who used swords. He was concerned of course, who else used swords besides Erza? And so now, he was looking around frantically for the said girl… until finally, he picked up her scent. It went towards a female hot spring… and then he picked up another familiar scent… but that wasn't important.<p>

"Erza!" He called, rushing around the building. He stopped right in front of it and stared inside, seeing many women going in and out of the place. He thought it would be a disaster if he just burst in there, and with Erza as one of the costumers… *shudder*

"Yosh! Now commencing ninja mode…" He grinned to himself as he pulled up his scarf over his head and above his nose. "Nin-nin"

He sniffed around… trying to grab Erza's scent from the many others that surrounded him and when he picked up just a small tinge of it, he dashed for that direction. Carefully, he climbed over the building's wall and pushed himself onto the wall to prevent people from seeing him. And then, as stealthy as he could, he leaped onto the roof and crawled towards her scent.

He stopped crawling on the roof when his nose twitched just above the girl's locker room. He held onto the pipe lines as tight as he could and then peered down. Yep! The smell was so strong here. Natsu then heaved himself into the room and swiftly hid behind one of the lockers. He peered around, just in case girls were around and when he thought that the coast was clear, he quickly searched around for Erza. Everything was fine until he walked around a corner and instantly froze when he saw a blond girl with crimson eyes changing back into her clothes. Of course, being the dense idiot that he was, he wasn't even affected when he saw that she was clad in nothing but her birthday suit.

But then, out of the blue, came some golden light that enveloped the girl and Natsu couldn't help but gasp… when the golden light disappeared, the blond haired girl was no longer there and in her steed, was Kourin in all her glory. As soon as he gasped though, he swiftly hid behind the lockers and tried to calm his nerves. He waited for a while before peeking again and saw that it was indeed Kourin and not just the trick of his imagination.

'_Shit! Kourin's actually blond! I gotta tell Gray this!'_

* * *

><p><strong>7:27 PM Earl and Fairy Hotel: Room 183 (one of the three rooms they hired)<br>**

* * *

><p>"Are you sure? Are you infinitely, positively, I'll-punch-you-if-you're-not-fucking-sure, Sure?!" Gray asked Natsu as they huddled together at the edge of the room they were in. Erza, Kourin, and Sythe were talking about some things and that left them some time to talk privately. Natsu nodded his head.<p>

"I'm sure of it, ice freak. Kourin has blond hair! I saw it when she was getting out of the hot springs!" Natsu informed Gray. The ice alchemist's eyes widened at the information and instantly hit Natsu's head.

"What were you doing at the women's hot springs?!" He seethed, but there was a faint blush on his cheeks.

"I was looking for Erza! Idiot!" Natsu punched him on the face. At this, they felt Erza's gaze at them and they instantly initiated buddy-buddy mode. When the two were cleared, they glared daggers at each other.

"But if she has blond hair, why is she covering it up with black hair?"Gray asked, pinching his chin thoughtfully.

"That's what I'd like to know!"

"Well why don't we ask her? What's the harm in that?" Gray asked, sneaking a glance at the blond haired girl. She was acting normal and she had no trace of blond in her. And then he looked back at Natsu who had that unbelieveing look on his face.

"What?"

"Are you crazy? She'll think we're stupid-"

"Which you are," Gray cut in. Natsu punched him in the face and then continued.

"Why would she tell us about her hair being naturally blond if she was hiding it in the first place?" The fire dragonslayer seethed, not getting why Gray was acting weird now.

"You have a point there... ow! That one hurt ash-for-brains" Gray hissed, patting his bleeding broken nose. That was gonna leave a mark until he gets back to Fairy Tail.

"You deserved it stripper. Now what're we going to do?" Natsu asked anxiously. Gray was about to answer when Sythe approached them with a wide grin on his face. They both instantly shut their mouth closed and stared up at him like they stole the last cookie in the jar.

"What? I'm just here to give the room arrangements. Aniki and I get to sleep in one room!" The younger mage beamed at his older brother who clapped him on the back. Natsu scratched his head. That leaves two rooms. He's sure to get the single room since-

"Natsu. You stay with Kourin-san. Now all of you, leave my room!" Erza commanded, her voice threateningly low. All of them nodded and scurried out of the room. Sythe and Gray immediately walked of the their own **(Room 192) **and left the other two to stare at each other in shock.

"No-"

"-way"

* * *

><p><strong>Raven: Not much of an update here, but it actually reached 9000+! That's a new record for me! hehe... anyway, that's all i have to give you guys for today's update. Next comes the sneak peak... after this message<strong>

**have you noticed the change in the summary of the story? the part about (pending pairing)? well, i'm guessing that some of you already guessed why that is. it's because i have now removed the IMPOSSIBILITY of Lucy and Edo Natsu to end up together... yep! they can still end up with each other! But that's still a possibility. Who knows, maybe Lucy's gonna have a change of heart and fall for BIXLOW instead? (total crack pairing!)  
><strong>

**Anyway, there's nothing else to add so ON WITH THE SNEAK PEAK!  
><strong>

**_"You just noticed it now? Lucy has blond hair! Kourin has blond hair! What if-" The team were riding on a train going to Roulette City after they stopped over at Acalypha for three days. Natsu and Gray were in their own compartment, head-to-head, careful not to be overheard by anybody. Especially not the Crimson eyed killer._  
><strong>

**_"That's impossible fire breath. Lucy's a kind, smart, passionate, and all around nice girl. Kourin-san's the delinquent chick who can kill us both if she feels like it. There's no way it's her." Gray shook his head.  
><em>**

**_"But-" Natsu was about to react to that statement when the train suddenly lurched forward. Gray was thrown over Natsu and landed on the floor with a painful crunch.  
><em>**

**_"Erza! Look out!" The two males heard Kourin exclaim in warning... but then they heard a thud as if someone was pushed to the side and then...  
><em>**

**_*CRACK*  
><em>**

**_"Kourin-san!"  
><em>**

**__That's all i have in store... until the next update! Ciao~  
><strong>


	15. 014: Ah, the Irony of Life

**Raven: Okay, let me just warn you people that I will be ranting nonsense about why I haven't updated for, hmmm… let's see, ah… 2 MONTHS so if you want to skip the mindless nothings I'm gonna be saying (just for the heck of it) feel free to proceed to the next line break you'd see.**

* * *

><p><strong>Mindless Ranting now commencing: <strong>

Let me just say one thing, I don't update for 2 months and when I come back to do so, BOOM! 81+ reviews on just chapter 13! I mean, did that chapter really deserve all that love?! Seriously, it made my day! I actually jumped on my bed and danced a victory dance (which probably made some noise… okay, a LOT of noise since my useless [but loveable] excuse of a brother barged in and barked at me. Yes, BARKED). When I was through celebrating; I quickly typed up this area before updating. THANKS GUYS! Thanks so, SO, SOOOO very much. As an author, receiving that much appreciation and response from my readers is such a big deal. So, I hope it continues like that… and really, thanks. I'm so glad right now. Whoo~ BEAT THAT RAIKAN! Mwahahahahaha! (for those of you who don't know, Raikan's my identical twin brother. He's 0raikan0 here in fanfiction. You should go check out his profile. He's got this great story going on: Pain ten times over and Lucy's Mine! Grrrr…)

**And now, I shall begin the part of the mindless ranting where I tell you guys the reason I haven't update for such a long… LONG time:**

You see, I've got school right now… and I know, it's not that much of an excuse but here's the thing. I go to a Science High School that focuses on Academics and all that crap. Not really a fun school. I've got these requirements that keep piling up week after week. I've had deadlines I needed to make and projects overdue. My Math Investigatory Project isn't even done yet and that's been like, I don't know, weeks late (maybe even a month)? Yeah. And my research paper needs some serious, and I mean SERIOUS, revisions. Plus, exams just finished a week ago so even if I HAD finished the chapter, I couldn't have had the time to update. SO there… But that's not all there is. Recently, my school (which used to not care about nonacademic stuff) suddenly entered into this HIP HOP and BALLROOM dance competition which just finished 2 days prior to this update. Yeah, I was really hyped and excited and we actually won (NOT… try guessing whether we have or not. xD). Now the other thing about me not getting to update, which comes in general and will always be a reason for me not updating is that I've got part time jobs I need to go to and my health. I've got a sickness that you people are lucky enough not to have (it's quite rare) so I need to face medications.

**End of Mindless Ranting…**

｡◕‿◕｡

**For those people who skipped the above, you guys are such lazies… haha, just kidding. I'm sure you just want to go ahead and delve into the story, I mean I've kept you waiting for months. And so, without further ado, here's the Response corner I've promised.**

* * *

><p><strong>RESPONSE CORNER<strong>

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><p><strong>To all who have reviewed: <strong>Thank you very much! It is my greatest pleasure to know how much you have come to love my story! Of course, if it weren't for the support you have given me, I would've deleted this story long before you could say **Matata **(random word that came to mind, :D). Anyway, most of you guys asked some things, suggested some things, and commented on some things. I will answer them now.

**Regarding the Pairing: **Okay… let's see: IT'S A SECRET. I know a lot of you want Lucy and Natsu to end up together (well, who WOULDN'T?!) I mean, they're **perfect **for each other! And besides, it **was **the original pair. But like I said before: who wouldn't want a surprise? I mean, having you guys guessing who's gonna end up with who's fun, isn't it? And it adds color to the dull story… the other pairing too, Lucy and Edo-Natsu. Some have agreed, some said: _what about Edo-Lucy? _I know right? She'd be crushed!

Still, I have already made my decision. It's all on the matter of how I'm gonna develop the story… so you guys just relax and enjoy, okay? You don't have to worry about these matters. Fanfiction is a place for relaxation and escaping from the demon clutches of reality and life… just leave the thinking to me… xD

**Regarding how long it takes for me to update: **Well you see life has been picking on me for the past few months. School's gotten so tight that I can't even spend time with my family and we live together! I also have a part time job, but it isn't much of a hassle. Then there are some conflicts with my friends and then there are my confused feelings. Plus, I have some health issues to deal with so I don't really have much time to work on the story. Still, I try my best… hope you guys understand? It's okay if you don't though… :D

**Regarding how I end my chapters: **Awww, come on! Who doesn't love a good cliffie? It's a nice way to end a chapter. But yeah, I'm overusing it, am I? Sorry… this time, it ain't a cliffie… but the Sneak peak is.

**Regarding the general story: **I received a direct comment via PM and it's only right that everyone reads this… about where the story's going: Am I really taking too long in getting to the good part? If I am, I'm sorry. I've already arranged what's gonna be happening but I don't know how to write them down. Conversations are hard to think up, location and OC names are a hassle, and descriptions can be hard too. Still… no excuses right? I'm gonna do the best I can so you guys don't have to worry. Someone also suggested I get a Beta. Not that I don't like the idea of having Beta's and that I think lowly of author's who have Beta's, I am a Beta too, but I don't like the idea of making someone else edit and do my work for me. I tried that before and they just ended up sabotaging me. So yeah…

**Regarding how life sucks: **Yeah, no need to say more…

**(****ღ****ღ****) ****･*****:.****｡****. .****｡****.:*****･**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail… otherwise, things would be a LITTLE bit different. Like, let's see… NATSU AND LUCY HOOKING UP! .**

* * *

><p><strong>CHAPTER 14: Ah, the Irony of Life<strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Outside Erza's Room; Normal POV<strong>

"No-"

"-way"

A deafening silence filled the whole corridor of that particular floor the pair of mages stood on. Salamander stared eye to eye with Black Rose, both unwavering, both carrying shock and some other emotion each would rather keep a secret. A few moments later, Erza's door suddenly slammed open and the Titania growled at the two.

"Are you just going to stand there all night staring at each other or are you going to get your asses out of here and go to your room?" She seethed, her brown eyes carrying hell's fire within them. Natsu broke their intense stare-off and cowered in fear before the angered knight. Lucy pretended she wasn't scared but deep down, the old Lucy was shaking. She kept her façade up though and just shrugged.

"Whatever." She said before turning around and walking down the silent corridor. Natsu merely watched her retreating back before he squeaked and followed after her when he felt Erza's penetrating gaze on his back. Now reaching the stairs, Kourin suddenly stopped and turned to face Natsu.

"Look here, NATSU." She hissed, emphasizing his name. "I sure as hell would never stay in the same room as you, but seeing as I've got no choice, let me tell you one thing."

"DON'T GET IN MY WAY IN ANYTHING. Got it?" Her eyes were blazing. Natsu frantically nodded, not wanting to get on another sword-woman's bad side. Seeing that, Lucy stalked off in another direction.

"W-wait!" Natsu called out, remembering something.

"What?" Kourin spat, obviously irritated. The fire dragonslayer shook his head in fear.

"Hmmm…" And with that, she disappeared around a corner…

Natsu stood there dumbfounded… "I don't know our room number,"

* * *

><p><strong>Acalypha; Open Dojo: Lucy's POV (right after leaving Natsu)<strong>

* * *

><p>I could feel my hair stick to my face as I continuously attacked the dummy in front of me. My body was throbbing for more than just a half-assed joke of training. It was all I could do to keep myself from giving in to the temptation of dragging the idiot into the dojo and making him the dummy.<p>

"_Of course, he __**is **__a dummy…" _I muttered to myself as I kicked the dummy away and gave out a frustrated sigh.

"Problem?" I heard a familiar deep tone approach me from behind. I didn't have to turn around to know who it was.

"Fullbuster. What're you doing up? Shouldn't you be in your room sleeping?" I asked him, not bothering to turn around.

"I'm not a child anymore, **mother**. Besides, what are **you **doing up?" He asked, walking in front of me and revealing that he was wearing nothing but his slacks. I rolled my eyes. If I didn't know better, I'd think that he was flaunting those sculpted abs of his. Of course, I knew better so I just shrugged it off.

"Nothing that involves you" I answered harshly. Honestly, I was very, very pissed. Maybe it was because of the room arrangements… no, it **was **because of the room arrangements. Fuck Erza for making her sleep in the same room us the idiot. What was she thinking?

"Oh right, I'm sure it involves someone with pink hair… am I right?" He dared tease me. I narrowed my eyes at him and pointed my sheathed sword right at his nose.

"You know I can kill you right now, right?" I threatened him, poking his cheek with the tip of the scabbard. I saw his eyes widen and noticed how his Adam's apple dipped low as if he was swallowing hard. I inwardly smirked, triumphant.

"B-but you won't… you can't," He managed a stutter. I raised an eyebrow and leaned forward, tipping his chin up with my sword.

"And why can't I? There aren't any witnesses… It's just you," I stepped closer and leaned forward with the sword tip going behind his neck. "… and me" I whispered to his ear. I smirked when I felt him shiver and swallow hard.

"K-Kourin-san…" Gray managed to say. I leaned back and smirked at him. He looked at me confusedly. I wonder what he's thinking. But that didn't matter. All I wanted to do was hurt someone… but I couldn't afford to hurt him. He was still my friend after all. Even if he didn't know it… If it was Natsu though, I wouldn't even think twice about beating the crap out of him. The idiot!

"Nah. Just playin' with ya… go and get some sleep, you'll probably need it. Knowing you guys, there ought to be some trouble hiding just around a corner…" I stepped back and grinned. I looked at him and noted that he seemed confused. He probably wasn't used to Kourin acting this way. Actually, even I was surprised I wasn't kicking him out of the dojo. To tell you the truth… having Gray here kind of comforted me. I know right? It's weird… especially since moments ago; I was so pissed that if I didn't know him, I might've killed him already. But then again, it WAS a full moon…

"Ne Kourin-san… are you okay?" He asked. I grinned and shook my head. _Yep. He really wasn't used to this side of Kourin. _

"Just perfect… now get going." I said, turning away from him and fixing up my hair. When I was done, I looked back and saw that he still stood there watching me.

"What? Aren't you going to leave?" I asked, picking up my swords and slinging them over my shoulder. He just stared at me and I noticed that a light tinge of pink had made its way to his cheeks. I chuckled and walked past him. Just when we were shoulder to shoulder, I remembered something.

"Ah… forgot to tell you something. Keep this side of me a secret. Or else you'd find yourself hanging off of a nearby cliff I just happened to find." I smirked and then left for the cemetery here in Acalypha.

* * *

><p><strong>10:02 PM, Earl and Fairy Restaurant: Natsu's POV<strong>

* * *

><p>"Sho yer shayin' zhat Kwowin-shan went shome pwaysh at zhish time?" I asked Gray while I chewed some of my fire chicken. I didn't know what happened to him but the ice princess seemed a bit shaken up. Must've been Kourin, she's real scary… even scarier than Erza and Erza's a demon! I bumped into him while I was looking around for our room.<p>

"Yeah. Dunno where though and it's this late," He said, resting his cheek on the palm of his hand. I shrugged. Kourin was a strong girl. She can take care of herself… but where was she off to? I swallowed down the food with a gulp of my fire whiskey and gave out a satisfied burp. The guy from the other table across us gave me a weird look but who cared? He was just some sissy who probably couldn't even lift that table he was eating from.

"Maybe she knows someone from here…" I offered. That was possible. With her strength, she's bound to be famous. And didn't Erza call her black rose? Wasn't that some kind of nick name for that famous assassin in Clover Town?

"That's probably it…" Gray mumbled, but I heard. I was now done with my food so I had nothing else to do but wait for ice Princess to man up and forget about Kourin. And then I can continue looking for our room. But then I saw his cheeks getting a bit red and I remember Lisanna doing that when she gets embarrassed. I think she called it a bu… bla… right! A blush!

"Why're you blushing?" I asked him. He suddenly choked on his spit and gave me a surprised look.

"What? You are. See, your face got redder…" I said, pointing to his stupid face. Really, was he an idiot? Didn't he feel his face warming up? I mean, I could **hear **the blood going to his cheeks.

"Am n-not…" He argued, covering his face with his hand. Man, he looked so gay **(1). **

"Shit, you sounded like a girl. Well, whatever. I'm getting tired; I'm going back to what I was doing. See ya" I stood up and left him there gaping at me.

"You do realize you're gonna be sleeping with Kourin-san in one room right?" he asked, catching up. I shrugged. Didn't matter, just as long as she didn't kill me in my sleep or something close to that… besides, she said I should not get in her way right? Doing that will ensure my safety.

"Yeah, so?" I answered while he paid for the food I ate. Then we got out of the restaurant and I reveled for the fact that for the first time in years, they didn't kick me out.

"Uhhh… nothing…" He mumbled. I gave him a confused look but then shrugged it off. Gray was really acting weird now… no, he really is weird. He just got worse.

"You're getting weirder and weirder…" I pointed out.

"Have you even been to your room anyway?" He changed the topic. I stopped on my tracks. No. I haven't. That's why I was going to look around for it. Stupid Gray.

"I'm guessing that's a no. Do you even **know **your room number?" He asked me again. I frowned and shook my head. No. But that's why I was going to look for it!

"Seriously? So how do you expect to get to your room?" Gray gave me a smug look. I narrowed my eyes at him and gave him the finger. He just wouldn't shut up would he?

"Well fucking ain't gonna get you anywhere…"

"That's not what I meant!" I felt myself heating up. Damn the stripper. He was gonna get it once we're out of this hotel.

"And you're calling **me **weird. Anyway, I gotta go get some sleep or else Erza's gonna have my ass so see ya" He walked away, waving a hand. I stood in the middle of the hallway watching him disappear in one of those elevators… urgh… just thinking about it moving gives me stomach ache. I walked off into a different hall and slumped down on the floor.

"Where the hell is our room anyway? Erza didn't tell me anything… and Gray wasn't any help either." I mumbled to myself while trying to calm my upset stomach. Damn this motion sickness!

"Dude, did you see that chick? Damn was she hot!" I heard a guy who was walking down the stairs tell his friend. I ignored them and got up so I could look for our room. But then the next thing he said caught my attention.

"Yeah… and her eyes… they were so sexy. I guess my new favorite color's red" The taller one of the two sighed dreamily. _Red eyes? Maybe it's just a coincidence._

"What are you, a girl? But I must agree with you. Her eyes were like crimson flames… and they've already melted my heart…" The chubby one said, roses suddenly sprouting from all around him. _What the hell?_

"Too bad she's a Fairy. Boss's gonna have our heads when he learns we like one of them…" The giant frowned. _A fairy? That can only mean the girl's from Fairy Tail… which can only mean it was Kourin… _

"Have you heard of what happened to the boss on his way here? He got his ass kicked by another Fairy girl… Damn, hope it's not the Crimson eyed chick." Fatso shook his head. I turned around to face them but saw that they were walking the other way.

"Hey! Wait!" I called. The giant turned around first and when he saw my hair he was about to laugh but then he probably saw my mark and sneered.

"What do you want?" He asked angrily. I just gaped at him when I noticed that he had a very small face compared to his very long head. I ended up laughing.

"What's so funny?" The fat one turned around too and that got me laughing harder. This time it was the other way around! He had a very big face in a very small head!

"Fuwahahahahaha! D-damn! Hahahaha!" I grabbed my stomach and tried to stop laughing but it was just too funny!

"Seriously, if you don't wanna get beaten up, FAIRY, just leave already" The tall one with the small face narrowed his eyes at my mark and then turned his gaze to my face. I calmed down but I still sniggered every now and then.

"Uh… you wish. But I'm not here to fight; you were talking about a fairy girl with red eyes, right?" I asked. The two exchanged looks and it was like they were talking to each other with their eyes. It was weird and creepy at the same time.

"No, we didn't. Now leave us alone before we hurt you" The fat one said turning around. I grabbed his shoulder and made him face me.

"You **were **talking about a girl with red eyes, weren't you?" I tried again. I felt fatso shiver and he was about to open his mouth when the giant pushed me away.

"Your pushing it kid, one more wrong move and I'm seriously gonna have to teach you a lesson." He hissed. I shrugged. I didn't really mind, as long as the lesson involved fists. But then I remembered we were in a hotel. Erza's angry face flashed in my head. I shivered. He was about to hit me in the face when someone intercepted and kicked him a few yards away. I got a sniff off the air and I instantly knew who it was.

"Kou-" She suddenly silenced me with a glare and turned back to the two funny looking guys in front of us.

"It's you!" The fatso exclaimed his eyes suddenly all shiny and sparkly it was horrifying. Especially on that pudgy and oily face of his… eww… Kourin didn't even flinch or move. She just stood there looking at them. Was that disgust in her eyes? I guess it was. She looked disgusted. Good thing she wasn't looking at me.

"Leave." She seethed. When the two didn't make a move to do what she just said, her eyes narrowed dangerously. "NOW." With that, fatso and giant ran off without another word. When they disappeared, she turned to me… angry.

"Were you about to fight?" She asked, her eyes blazing the hell's fire Erza used on us a while ago. The hell's with women who used swords?

"N-no,"

"Good." She said before turning around and walking away again. What? That easy? She was gonna let me go that easily? What's going on? I stayed there thinking about this and didn't realize she turned back to face me.

"Are you just gonna stay there or are you going to follow me to our room?" She asked. I stared at her, finding something familiar with her voice but I couldn't place it.

"Well are you?" Her voice turning impatient… I instantly shot up and walked to her.

"Natsu Dragneel, I don't want you meddling with someone else's prey." She suddenly said while we were walking up the stairs. What did she mean by that? Her prey? Huh?

"Wh-what?"

"What, what?" She countered. I was getting confused… was she playing with me?

"Uhhhh…"

"Figures you wouldn't get that. Just shut up and follow me."

"Aye,"

* * *

><p><strong>Room 143, Normal POV<strong>

* * *

><p>"I'm getting the bed!" Lucy yelled at Natsu who was clutching a part of the foot of the bed like it was his life. He had a determined scowl on but Lucy noticed how his eyes hid a hint of fear inside them.<p>

"No! I'm getting the bed! I called it first!" The fire dragonslayer roared, jumping onto the bed and claiming it as his. Lucy frowned folding her arms over her chest.

"I'm the girl here idiot! Girls always get the bed!" She recoiled, tapping her foot on the ground impatiently.

"Says who!"

"Says me! Now get off already!" Lucy charged at him and tried pushing him out of the bed. But Natsu wouldn't surrender it, not even when Kourin was attacking him like some crazy woman… of course; she was a crazy woman… but that wasn't the point.

"No! Never!" He exclaimed, grabbing hold of the headboard of the King sized bed.

"Let go!" Lucy tugged at him harder. Suddenly, they heard a crack and then all of a sudden, the two of them were thrown off the bed.

"Ack!" – "Waaaah!"

***thud***

"Uhhh…" Lucy moaned. She was lying on the ground and she was about to sit up when she felt something on top of him. And then the thing on top of her groaned…

"What the-" Her eyes shot open. There, straddling her in all his stupid glory was Natsu!

"K-Kourin… you're lips are bleeding." Natsu said, unconsciously reaching out to check on it. Lucy narrowed her eyes at the boy, not noticing how his hand was inching closer to her face.

"Ya think? It hit your brainless head!" She seethed, touching her lip… but it wasn't her lip that she touched… Natsu's hand was already there wiping away a bead of blood. She felt herself blushing like mad. A wave of something familiar hit her hard and she almost forgot where and who she was supposed to be and let go of everything… but the sound of her erratic heartbeat woke her up.

_I'm not supposed to be reacting this way… not now… not ever. _

"Don't touch me ya' bloody pervert!" She covered up her unease, pushed him away and stormed out of the room.

Natsu sat on the ground stunned at both Kourin and himself. _What the hell was that, idiot!? You have a girlfriend! Besides! She's Kourin! The ruthless killer who almost killed you once! _He scolded himself; his eyes cast on the ground.

* * *

><p><strong>The next day…<strong>

* * *

><p>Kourin never returned that night… not even at the restaurant where they were supposed to meet for breakfast<p>

"Natsu. Where the hell is Kourin? Why isn't she here with you?" Erza glared at him with those enraged brown eyes.

"I d-don't know…" The boy whimpered, frightened by the Titania's evil glare.

"What. Did. You. Do." She seethed, poking his chest by each word.

"Nothing!" Natsu exclaimed avoiding her eyes. Erza's eyes narrowed and she took a step closer to him, leaning forward.

"You're lying. You don't look at me when you're lying. Now tell me, what did you do?" They were nose to nose now.

"Nothing. I just wanted to get the bed but then **she **wanted the bed and we kinda fought for it and then we ended up on the floor and I was on top of her and her lips were bleeding and I wiped the blood off and then I didn't know why I did that but then she pushed me off and stormed away I decided to take the couch instead to say sorry but when I woke up today she wasn't around." Natsu finished trying to catch his breath. Erza and Gray exchanged looks while Sythe was busy talking to the waiter.

"You were on top of her?!" Gray asked skeptically, his eyes so wide they were as big as an owl's. Erza was blushing, thinking of many compromising things they could have done on the floor while Natsu was on top…

"Not the way you're thinking! We weren't doing anything like that!" Natsu shouted, his face as red as Erza's hair, pointing at the thought bubble appearing above her head. Just then, Kourin walked through the door.

"Kourin-san!" Gray exclaimed. Erza and Natsu simultaneously turned around, both still red around the cheeks. Kourin raised an eyebrow at the two before noticing the ever present thought bubble above Erza's head. Natsu realized what she was looking at and instantly waved away the bubble before she could see anything.

"Uhhmmm…" The scarlet and salmon haired mages hummed in embarrassment before Kourin, who just ignored them and walked towards the comfort room.

"What's up with her?" Gray asked, noticing the cuts, bruises and wounds present in every bare part of Kourin. Her clothes were also rumpled and dirty as if she wrestled in the dirt, like her clothes, her hair had the same treatment. But her eyes were the worst… they were bloodshot and so cold… as if she cried her soul out.

"How should I know, ice prick?" Natsu frowned, a little annoyed at how much it hurt looking at Kourin looking hurt** (2). **

"I wasn't asking, shithead!" Gray shot back. Natsu was too touchy when it came to Kourin nowadays… maybe the fire mage was getting _attached _to the celestial mage? . . . . . . **NAH! **Impossible, Natsu had Lisanna.

"Quiet you idiots!" Erza hissed, irritated at the two boys and at herself for being too naïve to think that Natsu and Kourin were… ***insert blush here* **doing those embarrassing things…

"Uhmmm, what do you guys want to eat?" Sythe intervened before things got worse. The three older mages turned to look at him and he thought he was getting swallowed by a black hole by their intent gaze when all of them gave him a flurry of food they wanted to eat. He sighed, realizing that these people were _idiots… _idiots in their own ways.

"I'll have a Crimson Flower and Bloody Mary" Kourin appeared from out of nowhere looking all clean and fresh. She didn't even seem to be pissed off at Natsu. _Which is good… _Natsu thought.

"Kourin-san!" Sythe and Gray exclaimed, shocked. Erza noticed her right away but kept searching for the perfect breakfast to start her day while Natsu heard her footsteps nearing them.

"What." She said more of asked as she took a seat beside the re-quip mage. The brothers exchanged looks and shrugged, deciding to order their food.

While they were eating, Erza told them about a dark guild present in the hotel who were accomplices of the mages who woke the demon Zagan.

"They are called the 'Desert Scorpions'. Their master is a man named Lues **(3)** he has spiky silver hair and jagged scars on his face. You may have bumped into him without realizing it. Aside from him are probably about 5 to 10 members. After breakfast, we're going to go check on the merchandise and then gather more information on the enemy." She finished, taking a sip off of her strawberry drink. The others nodded and finished their food as fast as they could.

Afterwards, they went to the magic store to check on their order. When they got there, Wes and Eas were already ¾'s done with packaging the things.

"It will be ready by dawn tomorrow" Eas said as he wrapped some magical straw around a silver chest. Wes nodded and stacked the finished boxes in a secure corner of the shop.

"Good. Then we will be expecting them at the hotel by then. Thank you." Erza said, nodding approvingly at the shop keepers. Leaving the magic store, they stopped by the park directly in front of it and discussed some matters before setting out to gather some information on the Scorpions.

"This is a covert operation. We should not seem suspicious and if you can, disguise yourselves well. Natsu, that doesn't mean you can play ninja." She turned her head to the already ninja dressed fire dragonslayer who groaned disappointingly.

"Now, let's divide the group to finish things faster. I'll work alone. Gray and Sythe, you go together. And that leaves-"

"Not him again! Why do you love leaving me and this pea-brain together? Don't you care about his life at all?" Kourin moaned. Seriously, she wasn't having any of this. Not when she was in a bad mood… A VERY bad mood.

"Hey! It's not like I like being paired up with you too!" A very hurt Natsu exclaimed. That was uncalled for. He didn't do anything wrong to deserve Kourin's anger.

"Then would you rather pair up with me then, Natsu?" Erza asked. The dragonslayer suddenly turned pale and was shaking madly.

"Yeah. That's better. I'll work alone and you two pair up." Kourin said smugly, liking the idea very much.

"Well then, now that it's settled, we meet at 7:00 PM sharp for dinner." And with that, Erza dragged the petrified Natsu away while Gray and Sythe watched him with pity in their eyes.

"So, where do you suppose we can get information on them?" Gray turned to ask Sythe, who was quizzically looking around. "What's wrong?" Gray asked.

"Kourin-san suddenly disappeared."

* * *

><p><strong>Acalypha Inquiries…<strong>

* * *

><p>Lucy looked at the large sign sticking to the wide building. <em>Acalypha Inquiries… <em>This place was supposed to hold all of its intel on everything that's happened and is happening in the town. Ranging from deliveries, crimes, new residents and even new born babies… she was sure to find something about the Scorpions in here. Pushing the large oak doors open, she walked inside and surveyed the room.

She was in a vast marble hall. About a hundred mages were sitting on high stools behind a long counter, scribbling in large scrolls, weighing what seemed like flasks of shining silver water, examining archive orbs and other things quite interesting. There were too many colored doors to count leading off the hall, and yet more workers of the Inquiry were showing people in and out of these. Lucy made for the counter.

Without so much as a greeting, she walked up to a free mage and was about to speak when she was interrupted by said free mage.

"Good morning Madame. I am Pat Jaris, how may I help you?" Pat asked with an oh-so-fake smile. Lucy instantly didn't like the girl. She didn't even know why. Maybe it had something to do with her smile?

"I've come to request to see of any recent activities by a certain guild here at Acalypha." She tried her hardest not to scowl at the innocent girl.

"Do you have any identification documents with you, Madame?"

"For?" Lucy asked, eyeing her.

"Just a safety precaution implemented in all Inquiry's around Fiore." Pat smiled… fake again, Lucy noted.

"I have no documents on me right now…" She trailed.

"Then may I have your name please?" Pat asked, producing a large golden archive orb from under her desk.

"Kourin Redfox," Lucy watched as Pat was engulfed in golden light that seemed to be coming from the orb. When the light finally died down, Pat was smiling at her, this time it was genuine.

"Okay, Miss Redfox. You are cleared. Please proceed to the golden door where you will find Jinnai, he will take charge of your request and answer all your inquiries." She said, extending her arm to the golden door at the farthest part of the room.

Lucy nodded in acknowledgement and walked towards the door…

* * *

><p><strong>Gray and Sythe…<strong>

* * *

><p>The brothers didn't know where to get information so they decided to roam around, hoping to chance into anything related to the Scorpions. An hour of walking around later, they still hadn't gotten any leads. Already on the verge of giving up, Gray sulked on a bench he and his younger brother were sitting on when he overheard a familiar name.<p>

"… Lues… he has no clue… yes, he is keeping a close eye on those Fairies… no, no… he is loyal, I have made sure of that… of course not, he does not suspect a thing…" Said a cloaked person hiding by an alley near the bench they were sitting at. Gray grinned evilly and Sythe shook his head.

"Come one Sythe, we're gonna get ourselves some information… Fairy Tail style." The older Fullbuster brother cracked his knuckles and slowly walked towards the alley.

* * *

><p><strong>Erza and Natsu…<strong>

* * *

><p>Natsu was still being dragged by the Knight when she suddenly stopped on her tracks and the fire dragonslayer bumped into her armored back with a painful cry.<p>

"Tenebris Bar **(4)**, I've heard of this before." Erza muttered to herself as she pinched her thin thoughtfully. She remembered coming across a member of the dark guild: Death's Head Caucus who was talking about this bar before she decapitated him. She recalled that it was famous for something but didn't remember what.

"Natsu, we're going in there." She said, motioning to the bar's sign. Natsu followed her hand and grinned when he saw the sign and smelled the beer and heard the distinct sound of fighting.

"We gonna crack some skull?" He asked, getting excited. Erza couldn't suppress her smirk and nodded.

"If it comes to that, yes" She answered, almost chuckling at the childish gleam in her kin's eyes.

"Hell yeah! Let's go!" Natsu exclaimed.

"Just remember to ask questions before hitting them." Erza reminded the fire dragonslayer.

With a blissful roar, Natsu charged at the door and kicked it open… Everyone and everything in the bar froze and stared at the dissipating smoke…

"Hello boys, we've come to ask a few questions…" A serious tone filled the silence, followed by a flaming pink haired boy and a gorgeous armored woman with scarlet hair. When a drunk mage threw a magical dagger at them, all hell broke loose.

**7:00 PM Sharp For Dinner… xD**

"I expect you have all found some information regarding the Desert Scorpions?" Erza asked as she opened the door the restaurant. Gray and Sythe gave her a thumbs up while Kourin gave a lazy "hai".

"Okay, well let's eat first before we discuss the matter…"

* * *

><p><strong>30 minutes later…<strong>

* * *

><p>"Ahhh! I'm bushed!" Natsu contentedly patted his flat belly, which was filled with fire chicken, fire whiskey, burgers, fries, fire squid, flaming barbecue, and other flaming food he could stuff down there. Gray, for the first time, agreed with him and took ate the last spoonful of his shaved ice. Erza on the other hand was still devouring her cake while Kourin was busy picking her teeth.<p>

"Alright. Now that we're all full and settled… Gray and Sythe, what did you find?"

"Well, the two of us were sitting on a bench somewhere around Acalypha when I overheard the name Lues. He was talking to someone on a communication lacrima and didn't know we were listening to him. Right before he could finish the call, we revealed ourselves and asked him some things… Fairy Tail style… Got it out of him that he's a spy sent by the guys who woke Zagan up. He was asked to watch over Lues in case he didn't do his part of the deal, which was actually to take us out before we got to Desierto. Oh, and the guys name is Eihn (N). I asked him who their leader was and he said 'twas some dude named Nox Rector **(5)**. He also said that their aim was to wake Zagan and control it to annihilate the Magic Council, or something like that. And then when the Magic Council was out, they'd overtake the King and rule over Fiore. After that, I asked him how they were supposed to control an elder demon when he suddenly passed out. Sythe and I decided to rope him and send him to the Magic council so they could take care of him."

"Their leader is Nox Rector… and they sent Eihn to spy on Lues… who was tasked to get rid of us before we reached Desierto… where they were to control Zagan to destroy and annihilate the Magic Council and take over Fiore…" Erza summed up Gray's statement. The ice Alchemist nodded his head.

"Well that's a revelation. The information we received are very different from yours. Good work. Kourin? Any intel on the Scorpions?" Erza turned to the silent girl.

"Well, what I got was more on the information on the Scorpions past. It turns out that Lues once belonged to this guild called Eisenwald where he was just a bartender. He got sick of being treated lowly and disappeared for 5 years. At that time, Scorpion was a light guild who was lead by Savis Anima **(6)**. They were one of the best. But then Savis 'mysteriously' disappeared and suddenly a 'long lost grandson' appeared and took over. Guess who it was?"

"Lues…" Gray guessed, not liking where the story was going. Poor old Savis… Although he didn't know the old guy, he still felt sympathy for his demise.

"Right you are. Lues turned up and took over. Since then, the Desert Scorpions were employed to do illegal stuff like assassinating high ranking officials, stealing artifacts and other high priced ornaments, kidnapping and other bad things you can think of. That was when the Magic Council disbanded them and the turning point of the guild's status. Just like Eisenwald's story, they continued even though they were no longer a proper guild."

"But what happened to the Mages under the Desert Scorpion controlled by Savis? They turned evil? They didn't fight back?" Sythe asked, pity and disgust swelling in the pit of his stomach.

"That's the thing. They didn't even fight back. They just suddenly turned bad. But some of them managed to escape and told others of how they suddenly lost their eyesight and it was as if they were dreaming. Turns out they were controlled, pulled like puppets. They only escaped because Lues was shit drunk that time and lost his grip on some of them. Now going back to the story, after the defeat of the Oracion Seis, the Balam Alliance was slightly imbalanced so they got Desert Scorpions to join them and that's how they met the Apocalypse Guild. This guild was the one who woke Zagan and its master is no other than Nox Rector."

"What! Really? I didn't see that coming…" Natsu exclaimed. All eyes were on him.

"I didn't know you were listening…" Erza said, licking her spoon sparkling clean.

"Could you even understand half of what she's saying?" Gray smirked. Natsu narrowed his eyes.

"I'm not so stupid as you think I am you know," He said, his tone offended. After that, he didn't say anything else, which got Gray a little guilty. Kourin continued without a care.

"That's not the only thing; Zagan isn't the only demon they're working on. There are three more; one of them is still fully asleep while the other two are half-awake. They're called the Trinity Devils, they're triplets. The youngest one of them is Aglasis **(6)**, he could manipulate space and time which also enables him to transport anything including living things. The middle is a female demon named Clistheret **(7)** she can turn darkness into light and light into darkness possessing power greater than Nirvana itself. The eldest is Bartzabel **(8)**, he is the conjurer of storms and has the power to control the original Alchemy elements which are Fire, Earth, Air and Water including the deadliest source of power: the soul.

"Although they're demons like Zagan and Deliora, they don't look anything like it. They look like humans albeit they have some distinct demonic characteristics and appearances that show they're dark side. If woken with Zagan, it will surely be the end of Fiore. And that's just about it… for the history and information about the Apocalypse Guild." Kourin finished. Erza and the others exchanged curious glances.

"Now regarding the Scorpions, just like what Gray said, Lues is supposed to get rid of us before we reach the border. He only has one problem. Lues found out about Eihn."

"What? So he knows he's being spied?" Gray asked.

"Yes. That's why he's making sure everything runs perfectly or else Nox's gonna get rid of us AND Lues, himself. That gives us 2 days to shake them off or we're gonna end up Fairy Stew. Aside from that, I found out that the Scorpions have a base somewhere in the forest nearby. That's where they usually stay when they have to come here. Also, Lues has been making visits to the places we've gone to."

"The magic store?"

"Yep,"

"The hot springs?"

"Uhuh,"

"Even this restaurant?"

"Yeah. Everywhere we've been to. It's most likely he's keeping tabs on us. Not only that, he's asked the clerk from the lobby what our room numbers are."

"Did the clerk say?"

"Nope, all information on their clients are classified"

"Where did you get all these information?" Erza asked, curious as to how Kourin got all this information.

"Can't tell ya'," The ebony haired mage shrugged. Titania shook her head but shrugged anyway.

"Well, from all you said it seems that this isn't just a simple mission of getting rid of the demon and the guild…"

"Obviously, now what did you and Pinky find out?"

"Natsu and I entered the bar called Tenebris. There we found a few members of the Desert Scorpions and were about to approach them when this drunk man suddenly threw a magically enhanced dagger at us. Then a rumble happened and it was all I could do to hold back from killing them off. We ended up catching the three members anyway and asked them some questions. We found out that the Scorpions are planning something tomorrow but that's when we leave for Bosco so we don't have to worry about them. Another matter, like Kourin found out, they're waking 3 more demons. They plan to control them by a flute for demons. Like a robot with its controllers, the demons would listen to any command played on the flute. They haven't found the flute yet, but they know its location. Somewhere in Joya so we will have to extend our trip in Joya to locate the flute before they do. To achieve that, we're leaving at exactly 3 AM tomorrow. We meet at station one, I'll go ahead and get the things we ordered from the magic store. That's all."

"I'm going," Kourin said, standing up.

"See ya," Gray and Sythe nodded at Erza and left too, Natsu following after them. Erza on the other hand…

"Another triple-deck strawberry cake please!" She called to the waiter who gaped at her like she was crazy.

* * *

><p><strong>Room 143<strong>

* * *

><p>Natsu walked into the dark room expecting it to be empty when someone suddenly attacked him and pinned him to the wall. He sniffed at the person and his eyebrows met when he didn't recognize who it was. When the lights were turned on, he almost gave a scream of surprise at who – or what – he saw.<p>

"What the hell are you?!" Natsu exclaimed, staring at the fish hybrid in front of him. It was just as what he said, a fish hybrid. It wasn't even a mermaid. It was the other way around. Instead of a human head and torso, this one had a fish as an upper body and a man as his appendages. The fish's mouth seemed to smirk at him and then it was suddenly surrounded by blue light.

"I'm a spirit… A celestial spirit to be precise…" The thing said as the light slowly dissipitated and revealed twins holding him off at both sides.

"Celestial Spirits? Wait. Are you Kourin's?" Natsu asked, trying to free himself. The twins shook their heads.

"No. Not yet. We are the Spirit of the paired fish, Pisces." They said at the same time, it was kinda creepy. Natsu gaped at them and then out of the corner of his eyes, he saw another weird looking girl sitting on top of the bed.

"I am Libra, L- Kourin's spirit. These two here wish to be employed by my master but are too shy to ask her up front." The girl with things hanging off her hands said in a teasing tone. Natsu watched as the twins blushed… at the same time!

"No we're not!" The two whined, everything they did happening at the exact same time. "It's just that… We've heard so much about Kourin-sama from the different Spirits she owned and we've wanted her to find our key for so long now. Yet it seems as though the stars refuse our wish." They bowed their heads in sadness.

"Which basically means that you're too shy… if you really wanted her to be your master, you'd have already revealed yourselves to her and gave her your key." Libra pointed out, wearing a smug smirk. She was loving this. Pisces was usually the one doing the teasing but now? Hah! She was having the time of her life!

"We've tried it countless times already Libra, you of all spirits should know that."

"Hold up!" Natsu interrupted the spirits bantering. Pisces' grip on him loosened and he took this chance to get out of the spirits hold. Now he was standing in front of the twins and Libra.

"You're Libra… Kourin's spirit?" Natsu pointed at the ox horn haired girl. She nodded with a wide smile. "And you're Pisces, spirits wanting to belong to Kourin?" He turned to the twins who both nodded. "What're you doin' here, then? If you want to be her spirit, aren't you supposed to go to her?"

"If it could be that easy, yes. Uncontracted spirits have limited amount of time on Earth than contracted Spirits. It's hard enough getting out of the spirit world without the mighty Spirit King finding out, we even have to spend it with the Lunatic." Pisces frowned, glancing at Libra who lost the wide grin on her face.

"Hey!"

"Then why don't you just do what Libra said and tell Kourin?"

"Because that would be too rude of us. Walking up to a great Celestial mage such as herself and telling her we want to be her spirits? That's too much!" The twins seemingly recoiled in disgust at the thought.

"Then show her where your key is like Libra said."

"We're not even sure where our key is, all we know is that it's always somewhere surrounded by water."

"Why do you keep making reasons? If you're really persistent in becoming Kourin's spirits, do everything you can. Even though you're not powerful enough, get stronger. Even if you don't know where it is, look harder. If you're too scared to ask her head on, gather enough courage. There's no limit to anything if you really want it." Natsu said pointedly, surprising the two spirits (three if you didn't count Pisces as one). They didn't expect the idiot looking human to possess such deep thoughts.

Natsu noticed them staying silent and clapped his hands.

"I can help you! Tell me where you 'think' your key is and I'll find it! Then I'll give it to her and everything'll be over and done with." He said, acting as if it was the most obvious answer to their problems. Which it wasn't, mind you.

"It's not that simple, human." Libra said. When the pink haired boy gave her a confused look, she sighed.

"Finding an uncontracted spirits key is like finding a golden speck of dust in a beach. There are countless places in Fiore, much less Earthland. You'd have to have a sense for keys especially the rare ones to have a chance at locating the key." She explained. "Even Kourin had a hard time getting mine." She mumbled, glancing at the two depressed twins. Now she wasn't too happy about teasing them earlier.

"But Pisces said he might know where it was. If I check that place and it isn't there, then we'd have one less place to check." Natsu didn't give up. Seeing those disheartened expressions on the twin's faces made him act this way. Pisces looked at Natsu and gave the human a small smile. No wonder Lucy was so kind to her spirits, she was surrounded with such wonderful friends.

"Alright. It's somewhere in the area of water surrounded by the countries of Iceberg, Joya, Desierto and Bellum." Pisces muttered, but Natsu heard him and that was all he needed.

"Okay! When we get there, I'll make sure to check that place. And while we're on our way there, I'm gonna ask around for your key, so you just sit tight aight?" The fire dragonslayer grinned at the two boys. Just then they all heard a footsteps outside and the doorknob turning.

"Well, guess we have nothing else to do here anyway. See you next time, human. Pisces, let's go." Libra smiled at Natsu and held onto the twins wrists. They disappeared in a puff of silver clouds right when Kourin entered the room.

"I heard some voices, were you talking to someone?" She asked, looking around the room. Natsu just shook his head and went to the couch.

"Mhmmm… I'ma gonna get some sleep. The bed's mine," She shot him a glare, to which Natsu replied with a squeak and a frantic nod. Kourin surprisingly smiled and patted his head before she went to the bed.

"Good night then," She yawned and jumped onto the bed without even taking off her swords and boots. Natsu stared at her lying figure before looking away with a small tint of red on his cheeks.

* * *

><p><strong>Acalypha Train Station, 3:00 AM<strong>

* * *

><p>"Is everyone here?" Erza asked, looking around. Behind her stood her mountain of a luggage and the pile of boxes from the magic store. In front of her stood Gray and Sythe looking as if they had just woken up and Natsu looking like he was still asleep.<p>

"Where's Kourin?" She wondered, already preparing some punishment for the girl.

"I've went ahead and checked out the train for anything suspicious. Don't go crazy on me," Kourin appeared from somewhere. Erza nodded and they set out to buy some tickets.

* * *

><p><strong>3:30 AM Acalypha Train #04: Acalypha-Bosco, 24 minutes into departure<strong>

* * *

><p>Kourin was busy keeping herself alert and awake when she heard Natsu try to contain what little he ate at the other compartment. He was with Gray while she was with Sythe and Erza. It was a miracle the two hadn't started fighting already, but maybe it was because Natsu was feeling sick?<p>

Deciding she didn't care, she let her mind take in the scenery outside and focus on keeping her eyelids open. It wasn't that hard. They've reached the part of the bridge where a gorgeous sparkling lake lay 100,000 meters beneath them and the landscape was just astounding.

* * *

><p><strong>Meanwhile, at Compartment #124<strong>

* * *

><p>Natsu and Gray exchanged annoyed looks but ended up talking to each other anyway.<p>

"Hey, flame breath…"

"Yeah, ice princess?"

"Remember that time when you told me about Kourin having blond hair?"

"Yeah, what about it?"

"Nothin', just realized that they had the same hair as Lucy…" Suddenly, Gray felt a fist collide with his jaw.

"You just noticed it now? Lucy has blond hair! Kourin has blond hair! What if-" The team were riding on a train going to Roulette City after they stopped over at Acalypha for three days. Natsu and Gray were in their own compartment, head-to-head, careful not to be overheard by anybody. Especially not the Crimson eyed killer.

"That's impossible fire breath. Lucy's a kind, smart, passionate, and all around nice girl. Kourin-san's the delinquent chick who can kill us both if she feels like it. There's no way it's her." Gray shook his head.

"But-" Natsu was about to react to that statement when the train suddenly lurched forward. Gray was thrown over Natsu and landed on the floor with a painful crunch.

"Erza! Look out!" The two males heard Kourin exclaim in warning... but then they heard a thud as if someone was pushed to the side and then...

*CRACK*

"Kourin!" – "Sythe!"

* * *

><p><strong>Compartment #125<strong>

* * *

><p>Erza was in shock. Her hair was fluttering madly all around her, the train was lurching badly now and half of her compartment was falling down… down to the ravine… with her dear team mates inside.<p>

"Kourin!" She suddenly regained her senses and peered down the train that was still moving. She saw the chamber falling but saw nothing else. There were no moving bodies… no Kourin or Sythe trying to save their selves. Suddenly, the door was kicked open and in came Gray and a slightly green Natsu.

"What's happ-" Gray stopped when he saw what 'happened'.

"Where are Sythe and Kourin?" He asked, his voice quivering and filled with anxiousness and disbelief. When Erza just kept looking outside the compartment, he realized where they were… Just when he was about to ask more, someone kicked him from behind, him almost falling out of the gaping 'hole' on the wall.

"What the hell?!" He hissed, turning around to come face to face with the Scorpion's master.

"Lues," Erza seethed. This must have been their doing. Well then, good. Now she had someone she could pin her worry and anger on.

An all out battle commenced.

* * *

><p><strong>Meanwhile… somewhere in the air…<strong>

* * *

><p>"Pipsqueak, make sure to hold on to me as tightly as you could! Aight?!" Lucy called out to the young boy who was clutching onto her torso like he was going to die… which he would if he let go. She tapped her belt and called out Draco. But before the spirit could materialize, they already plunged into the water and were being pulled by the strong current.<p>

"Hold on!" Lucy exclaimed, swimming against the current, trying hard to reach the bay. Just when she was about to lose her strength (what with carrying a 15 year old boy and swimming against the current) something wrapped itself around them and carried them to land. It was Draco. Before them curled a dragon with scales as dark as the night sky at its deepest and eyes as bright as the stars it carried.

"Took you long enough," Kourin grinned at her spirit and patted it on the nuzzle. Sythe watched them with fond eyes until he winced when he felt something painful on his side. Kourin noticed this and checked on him.

"Ah, hell…" She muttered when she saw the long and deep cut on the kid's torso. All she could do for him right now was to nurse the cut and wrap it up.

"Well then, I-" Kourin couldn't finish what she was about to say when a dagger unexpectedly whizzed pass her cheek and landed right between her open fingers. Looking up, she found herself face to face with the fatso and the giant. She instantly didn't like where things were going.

* * *

><p><strong>Moments later…<strong>

* * *

><p>Finally, Erza and the others fought off the Scorpions. Now they could focus on finding Kourin and Sythe. Natsu picked up their scent and led them to a muddled area. They saw signs of struggle, fighting and blood. Right under a large rock laid Kourin's shredded scarf. He sniffed on it and picked up her scent leading towards the forest with Sythe's and different others. He tied the scarf around his forehead and rand after them without another word.<p>

* * *

><p><strong>Somewhere in the forest…<strong>

* * *

><p>"Good job Draco!" Lucy grinned at the dragon. It just finished off those two Scorpions for her and now he was busy wrapping its huge body around them.<p>

"_Anything for you, Lucy…" _He answered her telepathically. She patted his nose and glanced behind her where she found Sythe lying unconscious on the ground.

"You can go now, I can handle things from here" She said, walking to the poor boy. Draco nodded and flew up into the sky and disappeared behind the clouds. Lucy knelt in front of Sythe and checked his wound.

"Tsk" She clicked her tongue upon seeing how it got worse. Damn those Scorpions! They had hit Sythe with a metal club on his shoulder and on the cut, now it was bleeding endlessly and she couldn't heal him without help from Andromeda. But if she spent any more magic, things would get a lot worse. At least now, nothing could go wrong. Just when she thought that, 5 blurs of black suddenly jumped from somewhere behind the bushes and surrounded her and the boy.

"Fuck." Lucy cursed upon seeing the guild marks on their bodies. "Me and my big mouth…"

* * *

><p><strong>_ (=^-<strong>**ω****-^=) _**

**Raven: **Ha! 10,594 words! (not including line breaks, and there are a LOT of them) That's a new record! And not updating for almost 3 month is another record! Yippie!.Gawd! I'm so sorry for not updating for so long and now that I'm updating, it's a sucky chapter… so sorry. I'm lacking inspiration right now. Especially since I'm juggling this story, my brother's other three stories, beta-reading, Possessed, and Life.

Anyway, I don't wanna bore you with another mindless ranting (I'm quite sleepy, it's 2:00 AM here) so I'm just gonna skip ahead to the notes part, the random explanations part and then the sneak peak part…

* * *

><p><strong>NOTES PART<strong>

**(1) Hey, no offense to gay people... It's all part of the story I got no quarrel with them. Actually, I'm close friends with one… so really, not intending to sound "discriminant"**

**(2) I couldn't think of any other way to say it in Natsu's POV**

**(3) Lues basically means EVIL in Latin. **Yeah, I love Latin words… I can speak it a bit, but that's nothing compared to my Cousin who can speak Latin fluently… now where was I?

**(4) Tenebris means DARKNESS in Latin, **therefore in English terms… It's the Darkness Bar. Sappy, I know…

**(5) Nox Rector: if translated directly like that, it would mean Night Guide. **But when using the literal term for Nox, which can range from night to ignorance, I've chosen death BTW… and the literal term for Rector which is ruler or Leader… you'd have the English term: Death Leader… another sappy one… *sigh*

**(6) Aglasis is the demon under the rule of Hael and Sergulath (sounds so weird…). He can transport anything throughout the world**. I just added the manipulator of space and time since I thought it made him a bit cooler. . I like demons in my story to have cool powers to make it harder for the characters… I'm a sadist. :3

**(7) Clistheret can make day into night and night into day. She is under the power of the Duke "Syrach". **Like I said, it's cooler if she had stronger powers than just making day into night and the other way around. So instead of that, she has similar and yet greater power than Nirvana.

**(8) Bartzabel is the Kabbalistic (don't even know what that means) demon of Mars. He has the power to raise storms. **That's his original power but again, I thought he could be cooler if he had the power to control the four original Alchemy elements.

* * *

><p><strong>RANDOM EXPLANATION PART<strong>

1. Hey guys. Noticed how Libra was the one teasing Pisces now? Well both of them are bipolar but they don't admit it. Plus, since the manga showed that Pisces are two large eel-fish (or something like that, :P) I decided to make them have human forms which resulted to twins. They're so cute, have you guys seen my drawing of them? If you haven't, I'm gonna post it on my deviant account. Still a newbie though so it might not be that good.

2. Another explanation part. Lucy's acting a lot more like Kourin since she's depressed about something. Remember the part where she enters the restaurant all dirty and bloodshot? No? Then go back. But if you do, that's gonna be explained in a little flashback next chapter.

3. One more thing! This chapter sucks since it's quite rushed and inspiration less… like I said at the beginning of the end (got what I mean? .) So if you got any questions, if you're confused or anything, feel free to REVIEW!

｡◕‿◕｡

**SNEAK PEAK PART**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Fifteen: The Young Celestial Mage<strong>

"_**Look," He motioned to the thing that fell out. It was a girl… a small girl with short silver hair and beautiful blue eyes. The girl seemed scared, until Lucy realized that she was still pointing her sword at the kid. **_

"_**What's a kid like you doing in a forest like this?" Kourin was back at full force. The girl shook and tears started to pool at the edge of her eyes. Sythe rolled his eyes at Kourin and knelt down to eye level with the child. **_

"_**Hi. I'm Sythe. We won't hurt you…" He asked, giving her a reassuring smile. She calmed down a bit and stared at Sythe. Seeing that the girl felt better, he proceeded to ask her questions.**_

"_**What's your name?" **_

_**With a little effort and courage for the girl, she said "Yukino… my name is Yukino Aguierra…"**_

* * *

><p><strong>THAT'S ALL FOR NOW<strong>

**(****Expect the next update in a few weeks…****)**


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